Six 'pro-Palestinian' activists' who had 'planned to disrupt the London Stock Exchange' this week are arrested

The stunt may have been 'one part of a planned week of action', Met Police said 

Police have arrested six ‘pro-Palestine’ activists who were allegedly plotting to disrupt the London Stock Exchange in an effort to prevent it from opening on Monday morning.

The suspects are members of the Palestine Action Group and were intending to cause criminal damage, the Metropolitan Police claimed.

They group were also allegedly planning on ‘locking on’ at the building to stop it from opening for trading.

The stunt may have been ‘one part of a planned week of action’, according to Detective Superintendent Sian Thomas.

She described the arrests as ‘significant’ and said their planned activities would have been ‘disruptive and damaging’.

The suspects were allegedly planning on ‘locking on’ at the building to stop it from opening for trading (file image)

Early this morning, Met and Merseyside Police officers arrested a 31-year-old man in Liverpool on suspicion of conspiracy to cause criminal damage.

A further five people, all believed to be part of the same plot, were arrested later on  for the same offence.

A 29-year-old woman was arrested in Albert Road, Brent and a 23-year-old man was arrested in Voss Street, Tower Hamlets.

Two women, aged 28 and 26, were arrested in Liverpool. A 27-year-old man was arrested in Brighton.

All six of those arrested remain in custody, the police said.

Detective Supt Thomas said in a statement: ‘We believe this group was ready to carry out a disruptive and damaging stunt which could have had serious implications had it been carried out successfully.’

The suspects are said to be members of the Palestine Action Group. Pictured: File image shows protesters during a pro-Palestine march last month

‘Having only been provided with the material on Friday afternoon we had limited time to act.

‘It is thanks to the determined efforts from our Public Order Crime team and our colleagues in Merseyside that we were able to identify, locate and arrest those we suspect to be involved in this plot.

‘Mindful of the suggestion that this was one part of a planned week of action, we are in contact with the City of London Police as well as other forces across the UK to ensure that appropriate resources are in place to deal with any disruption in the coming days.’