Woman arrested after Palestine protesters smash glass and throw red paint at offices

A woman has been arrested on suspicion of criminal damage after Palestine protesters targeted offices in Manchester city centre this morning.

Police were called to Hardman Street in Spinningfields at around 3:30am on Wednesday (May 1) after the front entrance and windows of an office building were left smashed and covered in red paint.

Forensics were seen working at the scene throughout the morning. The building is home to BNY Mellon bank and Barclays, which campaigners said 'both invest in Israel’s largest weapons firm, Elbit Systems'.

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Palestine Action shared pictures of the damage on X, formerly known as Twitter. The group wrote: "Palestine Action target the Manchester offices of BNY Mellon and Barclays. Both banks invest in Israel’s largest weapons firm, Elbit Systems #ShutElbitDown."

Officers now say a 53-year-old woman has been arrested on suspicion of criminal damage. The suspect remains in custody, and a police investigation is ongoing.

Palestine Action have targeted the BNY officers multiple times before, including in April when the One building in Piccadilly Gardens was covered in red paint and left with smashed windows. in March nine people were arrested after protesters targeted the same building.