Tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters took to the streets of London to denounce Israel’s war with Hamas as others gathered to recognize Armistice Day, a day for the U.K. to honor the soldiers who fought during and after World War I.
The demonstration was organized by the Stop the War Coalition and called the “National March for Palestine.” The mass demonstration, with estimates of up to 300,000 attendees, comes just over a month after Hamas terrorist attacks left over 1,400 Israelis dead.
According to London Metropolitan Police, 82 counter-protesters were arrested as pro-Palestinian protesters chanted “end the siege” and “cease-fire now.” British leadership had urged demonstrators to not come, saying that it would disrupt recognition of Armistice Day.
On Friday, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak asked protesters to act “respectfully and peacefully.”
“It is because of those who fought for this country and for the freedom we cherish that those who wish to protest can do so, but they must do so respectfully and peacefully,” Sunak said. “Remembrance weekend is sacred for us all and should be a moment of unity, of our shared British values and of solemn reflection.”
Police official Laurence Taylor said that previous pro-Palestinian protests groups had “small groups break away” whose behavior had “been escalating and becoming more violent.”
Video clips posted to social media showed massive crowds walking through London, many waving Palestinian flags.
London right now! #CeasefireNOW pic.twitter.com/FRjOkEE5V8
— PSC (@PSCupdates) November 11, 2023
Breaking: Volunteers at Victoria Station in London selling poppies for a veterans charity on #RemembanceDay/Veterans Day are surrounded by pro-Palestine protesters. The charity volunteers are forced to move further and further away. pic.twitter.com/z2hQQbb0bS
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) November 11, 2023
“[The march] being closely monitored by police. And we also have police looking out for any troublemakers that might be intent on causing disruption,” said Assistant Police Commissioner Matt Twist.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILY WIRE APP
Sunak and Home Secretary Suella Braverman both were critical of the march in the days leading up to Saturday. Sunak called the plans for the demonstration “provocative and disrespectful.”
Braverman said that police gave special treatment to pro-Palestinian protesters, calling them “hate marchers.”
“I do not believe that these marches are merely a cry for help for Gaza. They are an assertion of primacy by certain groups — particularly Islamists — of the kind we are more used to seeing in Northern Ireland. Also disturbingly reminiscent of Ulster are the reports that some of Saturday’s march group organisers have links to terrorist groups, including Hamas,” Braverman wrote in a op-ed published in the Times of London.
Similar protests have cropped up around the world, with hundreds taking to the streets in New York City on Friday night, with some demonstrators targeting Grand Central Station and vandalizing businesses.
