The unruly mob also harassed customers by urging them to close their accounts.
Barclays Bank faced widespread disruption on Saturday as hundreds of Hamas supporters besieged branches throughout the UK, demanding the bank sever its financial ties with Israel.
According to the Telegraph, the most significant disruption occurred in Brighton where dozens of anti-Israel protesters forced the branch to shut its doors after blocking the bank’s entrance with a banner reading “Stop Arming Israel.”
The unruly mob also harassed customers by urging them to close their accounts.
While some bank locations maintained operations under the watchful eye of police and security guards, the demonstrations organized by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) spread across multiple cities, including a notable gathering in Brent, where a dozen protesters occupied the entrance while displaying “Free Palestine” banners.
Similar scenes played out in Glasgow, Leeds, Oxford, and Coventry.
The PSC has accused Barclays of “bankrolling Israel’s genocidal assault on Palestinians,” alleging the bank has invested more than £2 billion in arms companies selling weapons to Israel, while providing additional financial services worth £6.1 billion.
In response, Barclays defended its position, maintaining it is “committed to respecting human rights.”
“As a universal bank, Barclays provides a range of client services in relation to the shares of publicly listed companies, including those in the defense and security sector,” a statement by Barclays reads.
“Barclays is committed to respecting human rights as defined by the International Bill of Human Rights and takes account of other internationally accepted human rights standards and frameworks.
“We have a published statement on defense and security which sets out our policy positions and governs any business activities in the defense and security sector, including setting restrictions on certain financing activities and requiring enhanced due diligence as appropriate on clients in the sector.”