A British army veteran has blasted a pro-Palestine march which is scheduled to take place over Remembrance Weekend.
Veteran Philip Ingram, a former military intelligence officer, believes the march set to take place in Birmingham on November 10 is “taking the p***”.
The march, which says it hopes to “mourn the murder of innocent Palestinians” will take place through Birmingham City Centre on Armistice Day, when the nation comes together to pay its respects to war heroes.
Speaking to GB News, Ingram said: “They’re trying to hijack what is a national memorial event that is commemorating Muslim soldiers, Hindu soldiers, Christian soldiers, or soldiers of no faith whatsoever who have laid their lives down so that people can protest.
“I’m caught in a dilemma, because I have fought for the right for people to peacefully protest. And I hope this is a peaceful protest.
“But actually, when people protest on the day that you’re remembering those who’ve given the ultimate sacrifice for it, it is a little bit over the top. It’s taking the p*** really.”
Ingram made attempt to hide his frustration as he added: “It’s a deliberate move. This is where the local council are failing. They could have easily banned it and the police could have turned around and said that they’re concerned about the safety of the veterans.
“There are many elderly veterans who’ll be there just trying to commemorate peacefully.
“I’ve been to the Remembrance service in Birmingham every year for many years.
“It’s in a tight, compact area. If you get protests going around the outside, you and I know there are people, there’s veterans, there’s cadets, there’s civilians all through the area. People will feel intimidated as to what’s happening and that’s just not on.”
There are calls on social media for permission for the event to take place to be withdrawn with letters sent by the mayor of Birmingham, the police and crime commissioner and local MPs.
Ingram continued: “We let them do it all the time. They have these protests all the time, every single day. This is our day, right?
“This is a very special day. Anyone who had a deep-seated sense of cultural attachment to this country would never think of doing something like this on this day, and, you know, the police could stop it.”
Last year, similar protests on Remembrance weekend saw counter-protests emerge which descended into violence, resulting in the arrest of 140 people.
Former Prime Minister criticised the violence but also asked questions as to why the pro-Palestine march had been allowed to go ahead.
