UK: Tens of thousands march for Palestine at Israeli embassy in London

Tens of thousands of protesters marched through a Palestinian neighbourhood in central London on Saturday as Israel continued its assault on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank.

Organisers made a series of speeches before the march began on Regent Street, before heading through central west London to the Israeli embassy in South Kensington.

Escorted by an army of green-vested volunteers, the protesters, carrying Palestinian flags and placards, called on Britain to impose a full arms embargo on Israel and for the Israeli military to end its war in Gaza.

Iqbal Mohammed, an independent member of parliament elected in July and a pro-Palestinian figure, took part in the march.

Mohamed told Middle East Eye that Britain's decision to suspend 30 of its 350 arms deals with Israel and return some funding to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, was just a drop in the ocean.

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“I was in the room when the government made the announcement, but it’s just a drop in the ocean and we need to do more,” Mohammed said.

The Foreign Secretary's announcement shows that our legal assessment also supports our concerns that British weapons have been or are likely to be used to harm innocent people.

Britain can be prosecuted for war crimes and as a British citizen and MP it is my duty to uphold international law.

Embassy of Israel

Saturday's demonstration was the 19th nationwide demonstration for Palestinians since the war began in October last year, and the first time a Palestinian demonstration has been held near the Israeli embassy in South Kensington.

The event was organised by a coalition of organisations including the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Friends of Al Aqsa, the Muslim Council of Britain, the Stop the War Coalition and the UK Palestine Forum.

“I have a back problem, but that's nothing compared to what the Palestinians in Gaza are going through right now,” said Zaina Bayad, who has attended every Palestinian demonstration since the war began.

Pro-Palestinian protesters march through London during the National Day of Action for Palestine on September 7, 2024 (AFP)

The protest, which ended outside Hyde Park near the Israeli embassy, ​​was blocked by metal barriers and dozens of police.

On the other side of the barricade, a group called Stop the Hate UK staged a protest against the People's March for Palestine.

The group, which waved Israeli flags and played techno music, was attending the Nova Festival on October 7 to protest Israelis killed by Hamas.

The group also urged Hamas to return hundreds of Israeli prisoners it took to Gaza on October 7.

The Metropolitan Police said today that eight people had been arrested in connection with the protest. Six of those arrested were arrested at the Palestine support march for a range of offences, including “criminal damage, assault and racially aggravated public order offences involving signs and gestures”.

Two people were arrested on suspicion of “disturbing the peace and assaulting a police officer” during a pro-Israel “Stop Hate” demonstration.

Right to protest

Saturday's protest came amid growing tensions over the right to protest after London police attempted to change the start time of a march at the last minute.

Last week, protest organizers clashed with police after they ordered protesters to begin marching at 2:30 p.m., two hours later than the scheduled start time of 12 p.m.

Organizers strongly objected to attempts to delay the protest, saying they were an attempt to disrupt the free movement of the protest.

Organizers told MEE they had notified police a month in advance of their intention to march on Saturday, August 7, but were only able to meet with police a week ago after several cancellations.

Britain's suspension of less than 10% of arms licenses is just a drop in the ocean

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On Friday, with less than 24 hours to go until the march began, police finally informed protest organizers that they would allow the march to take place at the originally proposed time instead of 2:30 p.m.

Chris Nineham of the Stop the War Coalition hailed the police shift in policy as a major victory for the Palestinian movement.

“We were very concerned when the restrictions were put in place on such short notice, but we are pleased that we can proceed as planned,” said Nineham.

I've been helping organize protests for over a decade and I've never seen the level of restrictions that have been imposed on us in recent months.

Protest organizers praised the move, but said police had not given a clear reason for delaying the start of the protest.

Organizers said police had severely disrupted their organizing efforts and followed a similar pattern in other instances of attempts to limit the ability of protesters to protest.

“When I heard that the police were trying to change the protest time, it made me even more determined to go out because our voices matter more now than ever,” Bayard said.

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