A barefoot pro-Palestine protester has scaled Big Ben’s Elizabeth Tower sparking a huge emergency response as key central London route is brought to standstill.
Londoners watched in shock as the man scaled part of the 96-metre-high structure, whilst waving a Palestinian flag.
The protester live-streamed later removing his shoes as he continued to climb the historic building with his bloodied feet.
In footage uploaded to Instagram, he could be heard shouting: ‘I’m not going anywhere,’ alongside chants: ‘Free, free Palestine.’
It is understood that the protester climbed the Elizabeth Tower at the Houses of Parliament at around 7.24am.
Westminster Bridge – a key central London route – has been closed as firefighters from four different stations, police and the ambulance service respond.
Parliament tours have also been brought to a screeching halt, with a Parliamentary spokesperson confirming viewings of the estate had been cancelled today.
Video emerging online shows the man urging firefighters not to come and rescue him from the building, as he refuses to come down despite their efforts.
‘At some point you will have to come down,’ a firefighter tells him: ‘How long do you think you are going to be there?’
Luke Whelan, who witnessed the incident told : ‘I was cycling to work when I noticed him climbing up Big Ben.
‘He looked like he was live streaming himself or on a video call or something. I assumed he was a free-runner influencer as he seemed very relaxed up there’
‘He was like a Poundland Spiderman’
A Parliamentary spokesperson said: ‘We are aware of an incident on the Parliamentary Estate this morning, which is being handled by the Metropolitan Police, assisted by the London Fire Brigade and the London Ambulance Service.
‘Parliament takes security extremely seriously, however we do not comment on the specifics of our security measures or mitigations.
‘As a result of this incident, tours of the Parliamentary Estate today have unfortunately had to be cancelled’.
A Met Police spokesperson said: ‘At 07:24hrs on Saturday, 8 March officers were alerted to a man climbing up the Elizabeth Tower at the Houses of Parliament.
‘Officers are at the scene working to bring the incident to a safe conclusion. They are being assisted by the London Fire Brigade and the London Ambulance Service.
‘Bridge Street, which is at the north end of Westminster Bridge, is closed to allow the emergency services to deal with the incident.’
A London Fire Brigade spokesperson said: ‘Firefighters are responding alongside the Metropolitan Police Service to reports of a person climbing part of the Palace of Westminster.
‘The Brigade was first called about the incident 0732, and firefighters from Lambeth, Chelsea, Soho and Islington fire stations are at the scene.’
A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said: ‘We were called at 7.30am today (Saturday 8 March) to reports of an incident in New Palace Yard, SW1A.
‘We have sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an incident response officer and members of our hazardous area response team (HART).
‘The incident is ongoing and we are working with our emergency services partners.’
In 2019, an Extinction Rebellion activist wearing a ‘Boris Johnson’ wig was arrested after climbing the scaffolding surrounding the Elizabeth Tower.
Tree surgeon Ben Atkinson, 43, began a daring free climb of the structure shortly before 4pm on October 18, 2019.
He was stopped and brought to the ground just before 7pm that same day.
He was later found guilty of trespassing and sentenced to 250 hours of unpaid work and fines totalling to over £800.
Big Ben was built 164 years ago with construction beginning in 1843 and finishing in 1859.