Protest arrests after seven detained over links to Kurdish rebel group PKK

Seven people have now been arrested by counter-terrorism police in London for suspected activity linked to the banned militant group, the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

The Metropolitan Police said two women, aged 59 and 31, and four men, aged 27, 62, 56 and 23, were arrested at separate addresses in the early hours of Wednesday.

The seventh person, a 31-year-old man, was arrested in west London in the afternoon.

They have all been detained under the Terrorism Act and are in custody.

There is not believed to be any imminent threat to the public linked to the matters under investigation, the force said.

The PKK is banned as a terrorist organisation in Turkey, the US and UK, and has been fighting against the Turkish state since the 1980s for greater rights for the country's significant Kurdish minority.

Officers are carrying out searches at at least eight addresses across the capital, including the Kurdish Community Centre in Haringey, as part of the investigation.

The search is expected to last up to a fortnight, with the centre and surrounding area closed to the public in the meantime.

Following the arrests large crowds gathered outside the community centre and remained there into the evening. Videos show dozens of police forming a line and pushing protesters back.

Scotland Yard confirmed four protesters were arrested on suspicion of support for a proscribed organisation, assaulting an emergency worker, making threats to kill and a racially aggravated public order offence.

Ishak Milani, of the Kurdish People’s Assembly in the UK, described the raids on "community spaces" as "unjust and heavy-handed".

“This aggressive act is not only an attack on our people but also an affront to the principles of democracy, justice, and human rights that the UK claims to uphold," he said.

In response to the accusations of heavy-handedness, the Met Police said: "These are targeted arrests of those we suspect of being involved in terrorist activity linked to the group."

Acting Cdr Helen Flanagan said the force "understand these arrests have caused some concern amongst certain local communities – particularly those in the Kurdish community".

The arrests over the "very serious allegations" followed a "significant" investigation, she added.

"This investigation and activity is about protecting all of our communities, but particularly those in our Turkish and Kurdish communities."

"I would urge anyone who thinks they may have been affected or targeted by those linked to the PKK to get in touch."

Officers will hold meetings with community leaders as the investigation progresses, police said.

Additional officers will also be in the community in the coming days, the Met added.