Met Police cuts ties with adviser Attiq Malik after chant video emerges

Attiq Malik is chair of the London Muslim Community Forum

The Metropolitan Police has ended its relationship with an adviser who was filmed making a pro-Palestinian chant during a speech to a group.

Attiq Malik was recorded in 2021 making the speech, ending it with the chant "from the river to the sea", the Sunday Telegraph reported.

Mr Malik, a lawyer, is the chair of the London Muslim Communities Forum, a body that advises the Met.

The BBC has contacted Mr Malik for comment.

In a response to the video shared by the newspaper, the force said he had expressed views "in a way which does not align to the Met's values".

On Sunday morning, after the Telegraph story was published, Mr Malik posted a quote by activist Malcolm X on X, formerly Twitter, which said: "If you're not careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed, and loving the people who are doing the oppressing."

When he was recorded, Mr Malik was addressing a group in Luton following an earlier Israeli offensive in Gaza in May 2021, the Telegraph reported.

"What's going on is global censorship by the Zionists, global censorship to silence us," he said in the recording.

'Contrary with our values'

During consecutive weeks of pro-Palestinian protests in London, the "from the river to the sea" chant has been heard frequently. It refers to the land between the River Jordan and the Mediterranean.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman previously urged police chiefs to consider interpreting it as an "expression of a violent desire to see Israel erased from the world". Israel and most Jewish groups agree.

This interpretation is disputed by some pro-Palestinian activists who say that most people chanting it are calling for an end to Israel's occupation of the West Bank and blockade of Gaza, not the destruction of Israel itself.

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A spokesperson for the Met Police said: "We regularly engage with a whole range of community groups, many of which hold strongly opposing views.

"This instance has highlighted past language and views expressed by Attiq Malik that appear antisemitic and contrary with our values."

The spokesperson added that the force would immediately cease its relationship with Mr Malik while it investigated the matter.

However, the spokesperson said the Met would continue its relationship with the London Muslims Community Forum, adding: "The insights, feedback and reach into communities across London continues to play an important role in our response."

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