Heathrow staff wearing pro-Palestinian badges “harassed” Israeli passengers and subjected them to “degrading treatment.”
Passengers complained they were attacked after staff noticed the Israeli flag on their luggage and were “rerouted” to a separate room.
When passengers asked why they were being treated differently, staff allegedly told them that as customs officials they could do whatever they wanted.
The complaints have sparked a Home Office investigation by its professional standards unit.
This comes after two Israeli survivors of the Nova Music Festival attacks were “detained for two hours” at Manchester airport earlier this year.
Heathrow staff wearing pro-Palestinian badges harassed Israeli passengers after noticing an Israeli flag on their luggage while passing through customs.
The Home Office is investigating the allegations. Staff wearing political badges contravenes both the airport’s uniform policy and the Equality Act 2010.
The passengers arrived at Heathrow on an El Al flight from Ben Gurion Airport and were passing through the airport at 10:30 p.m. when a customs officer noticed Israeli flags on their bags.
Agents led the entire group to a separate room for screening and the travelers said their luggage was scanned, The Times reported.
A passenger told the group UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) that they were walking towards the exit when a customs officer appeared and demanded one of the passengers explain what was in his suitcase.
When the man responded that it was an Israeli flag, the customs officer allegedly told everyone on the flight to move to a separate room.
One traveler said customs officials had told them they could do whatever they wanted.
They added: “It was a horrible feeling being taken to another room.”
The Home Office is now investigating the incident as staff wearing political badges contravenes both the airport’s uniform policy and the Equality Act 2010.
According to UKLFI, security staff engaged in “undesirable conduct” related to a protected characteristic – being Jewish and Israeli – and those people were intimidated as a result.
This comes after two survivors of the October 7 attacks were aggressively treated by the UK Border Force after they had traveled to the UK to raise awareness about a charity they set up to help survivors of terrorist attacks.
A Home Office spokesperson said: ‘Complaints relating to Border Force are dealt with in accordance with the Home Office’s formal complaints procedures.
“Any complaints about the way Home Office staff or contractor staff carry out their duties are taken seriously.”
