UK police target independent journalist in pro-Palestine crackdown

On August 18, Thames Valley Police stopped an independent journalist under the guise of “cross-border activity”. Jonathan Cook was driving near High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, when a police officer pulled him over.

Jonathan Cook: WTF just happened?

Unlike a usual traffic stop, the police car forced him to pull over in a “dangerous section of road between the roundabouts”.

Jonathan Cook said:

A policeman came over, bent down by the window and asked in the chummiest of tones: “Are you having a good day?” I said I was until he showed up.

He asked if my name was Jonathan Cook. He then asked what I was doing here. I responded that I was visiting family. Was that a problem?

In an article on X, Cook wrote that two days before police pulled him over, there was a protest outside RAF Air Command, close to High Wycombe. The protest was against British involvement in Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

He said:

Presumably, Thames Valley police have been on high alert ever since for possible pro-Palestinian activism that might target the RAF base in their area, just as RAF Brize Norton was targeted in June by the direct-action group Palestine Action.

Several people suggested the stop may have been linked to County Lines drug operations; however, it didn’t explain the strange police behaviour. He said:

The car has been registered in my name for four years. I have no criminal convictions. This was the middle of the day. Only I was stopped. And why name me to my face, if there is a suspicion of illegal activity, and not ask to see any documents or search the car?

Far more likely, it seems to me, is that a police number-plate check flagged either me or the car on political grounds. Either possibility should be deeply troubling about the state of our civil and legal rights at the hands of a police force and government that seem increasingly determined to expand a “hostile environment” policy for foreigners and immigrants to encompass the British public and deter political dissent.

Not the first time

Jonathan Cook and his experience is not the first time the British Police have targeted independent journalists.

As the Canary previously reported, on August 29 2024, counter-terror police arrested Sarah Wilkinson, a prominent pro-Palestine activist and reporter.

Similarly, the Canary also reported on the arrest of Richard Medhurst under similar counter-terror laws.

Cops held the independent journalist for 24 hours at Heathrow airport on August 15 2024. He believed it was because he reported on Israel and Gaza.

Six police officers escorted Medhurst off a plane and arrested him under Section 12 of the Terrorism Act 2000 – for, quote:

expressing an opinion or belief that is supportive of a proscribed organisation

As this was long before the proscription of Palestine Action, this was presumably either Hamas or Hezbollah.

Resolution 2222 (2015) of the UN Security Council states:

Condemns unequivocally all attacks and violence against journalists and media workers, such as torture, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrest and arbitrary detention, as well as intimidation and harassment in both conflict and non-conflict situations;

It also:

Calls upon States to create and maintain, in law and in practice, a safe and enabling environment for journalists to perform their work independently and without undue interference

The UK government could be in breach of that by creating an arena where journalists cannot report freely on the truth without fear of unfair retribution:

The police simply pulling over journalists for covering pro-Palestine protests could be seen as harassment, and therefore in breach of this resolution.

So-called democracy

The UK is ranked 20th in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index – this means the UK is ‘satisfactory’, rather than ‘good’. That alone should be worrying for a so-called democracy.

Craig Murray, a high-profile independent journalist and human rights activist, left the UK in September 2024 amidst the arrests of both Sarah Wilkinson and Richard Medhurst.

Murray is also the former British ambassador to Uzbekistan. Previously, he exposed human rights violations in the country. In 2023, British police detained Murray under counter-terrorism laws for declaring his support for Palestine whilst condemning Israel’s actions.

In October 2024, UK Police carried out a series of house raids on pro-Palestine activists – including journalist Asa Winstanley.

A London Judge later deemed the raid ‘unlawful’. The Central Criminal Court ruled that the Met Police had to return all the devices they seized immediately.

Jonathan Cook’s experience encapsulates state repression

The UK government has been doing everything it can to repress pro-Palestinian voices. This fits into the much broader attempts by the state to silence anyone speaking up for Palestine – whether it be grassroots organisations, protesters, or members of the independent press.

As Jonathan Cook said:

Now the warning signs are that simply driving while opposing genocide may be enough to get you stopped by the police.

The heightening impunity of the state, ramping up repression, should alarm us all.

Feature image via the Canary