Police have violently arrested at least 20 people who were peacefully protesting outside Wormwood Scrubs prison. The demonstrators had gathered in a show of support for political prisoner Umer Khalid, who has added a thirst strike to his ongoing hunger strike against the Starmer regime’s contempt for Palestinian lives and UK justice. One of those the Met arrested was Canary videographer Ibrahim Abul-Essad, who was there working as a journalist.
Wormwood Scrubs: arrests ongoing
At around 10pm, police ‘kettled’ the protesters, preventing them from leaving peacefully. Canary sources on the ground say police then started picking off protesters one by one. Cops were heard saying ‘arrest now, find evidence later’. According to messenger channels run by protest groups, the arrests are still continuing as of 11:30pm:
View this post on Instagram
Pro-Palestine activists demonstrate outside HMP Wormwood Scrubs @HMPWScrubs for hunger striker Umer Khalid#Palestine #PalestineGenocide #hungerstrike #uk pic.twitter.com/33mfRRjNmu
— Mizan Campaigner (@MizanCampaigner) January 24, 2026
View this post on Instagram
Eye witnesses told the Canary that, as of 11:30pm, it seemed the Met Police were intending to arrest everyone behind the kettle; potentially up to 50 people. Yet reports say numerous people within that were journalists. Essad, who is a videographer for the Canary, was arrested despite not being part of the protest and standing on the other side of the road at the time.
The Canary has spoken to multiple people on the ground at Wormwood Scrubs – including Skwawkbox’s photojournalist – who confirm that protesters were not threatening police.
Typically, the Met Police’s story is the opposite of what is happening on the ground. While police have prevented people leaving, the Met’s social media claim the arrests are because people are refusing to leave and were threatening police:
Video footage clearly shows police bottling up protesters and preventing them leaving:
HMP WORMWOOD SCRUBS
NOW @Prisoners4Pal pic.twitter.com/o7NNX2ELPR
— Air (@LONERANGE) January 24, 2026
Also true to form, disgraced pro-Israel agitators are egging on the police:
How did they get into the prison? Arrest them. @metpoliceuk pic.twitter.com/S4RInp7vnS
— Heidi Bachram
(@HeidiBachram) January 24, 2026
If the police aggression – like at Wormwood Scrubs – has followed the pattern of previous instances, there may well also be pro-Israel figures directing officers whom to arrest.
The Canary will be keeping up to date with this developing story across our social media channels.
Featured image via screengrab – Betty Dempsey
By Skwawkbox
From Canary via This RSS Feed.