More than 20 Metropolitan Police officers broke down the front door of a Quaker meeting house to arrest six women who had met to discuss climate change and Gaza.

It is thought to be the first time in the history of the famously ­pacifist Quakers that police have forced their way into one of their places of worship.

The women, aged between 18 and 38, were sitting in a circle eating hummus and bread sticks on Thursday evening as part of a ­“welcome meeting” for Youth Demand, which calls itself a non-violent protest group.

The police, some armed with Tasers, handcuffed the women, confiscated their belongings, took them to the police station and later raided some of their student accommodation.

A Met spokesman said