A PALESTINE solidarity campaigner was locked in a cage outside the offices of G4S in Manchester yesterday as part of a protest against the disgraced security firm.

Manchester Palestine Action Group is campaigning to persuade Manchester City Council to drop its contracts with G4S, which is paid to provide a range of services including security for council buildings.

G4S, which had to pay back millions of pounds to the British government after having been found to have made false claims for tagging criminals released on parole, is also involved in running Israeli prisons, including centres holding Palestinian children.

Yesterday’s Manchester protest lasted more than four hours.

Manchester Palestine Action organiser Adie Mormech said: “We were outside the front of the G4S office facing Piccadilly — it’s a very busy spot.

“We had loudspeakers and were sending out a message to the public about G4S’s involvement in Palestine and its treatment of prisoners, including children. The loudspeakers were blasting out details.”

The protest was part of a build-up to a bigger anti-G4S demonstration which takes place in Manchester tomorrow.

Protesters will be outside Manchester town hall at 9am to lobby councillors in advance of a meeting with the council’s finance scrutiny committee at 10am.

They will present councillors with a petition asking the council to adopt an “ethical procurement policy” which would exclude G4S from council contracts.

G4S is currently under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office following the discovery of its overcharging for tagging.