Tens of thousands of pro-Palestine protesters have gathered in Central London to mark two years since the start of the war in Gaza, a day after the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas came into effect. Photos show a sea of stalls selling keffiyehs and crowds carrying placards reading āfrom the river to the sea, Palestine will be freeā, āitās not a crime to act against genocideā and āStarmer has blood on his hands, free Palestineā.
A counter-protest by Stop The Hate was expected to take place at the junction of Aldwych and the Strand, with police putting measures in place to try to prevent a clash between the two groups. A āsmall groupā of counter-protesters had breached conditions by demonstrating at the form up area of the pro-Palestine march, leading to a āscuffle between several individuals from the two groupsā.
Last weekend, the Government announced that police would be given greater powers to restrict protests by allowing them to consider the ācumulative impactā of repeated demonstrations. Calls for restraint were made following the terror attack on a synagogue in Manchester on October 2 in which two people were killed, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer urging protesters to ārespect the grief of British Jewsā.
Protesters shouted āfrom the rivers to the sea, Palestine will be freeā as they marched towards Westminster on Saturday, a chant that Sir Keir has suggested the Government may crack down on. See shots of the action below.
Looking for more from MyLondon? Subscribe to our daily newsletters here for the latest and greatest updates from across London.
