Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters take to the streets of London to call for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas
- The march began at Bank Junction at midday with thousands attending
Thousands of pro-Palestine protesters have taken to the streets in London to call for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in a march from Bank to Parliament Square.
The march began at Bank Junction at midday on Saturday and is set finish in Westminster later this afternoon, following a route that takes it past St Paul’s Cathedral and Somerset House.
People on the march held signs which bore the words ‘Free Palestine’ and ‘End the siege’, while some protesters chanted: ‘One, two, three, four, occupation no more, five, six, seven, eight, Israel is a terrorist state.’
They also chanted the controversial slogan: ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’ and ‘From London to Gaza, Globalise the intifadas’.
An exclusion zone is in place prohibiting any protesters from assembling around the Israeli embassy.
The march began at Bank Junction at midday on Saturday
It is set to finish in Westminster later this afternoon, following a route that takes it past St Paul’s Cathedral and Somerset House
People on the march held signs with the words ‘Free Palestine’ and ‘End the siege’
Some protesters chanted: ‘One, two, three, four, occupation no more, five, six, seven, eight, Israel is a terrorist state’
A post on Palestine Solidarity Campaign’s website reads: ‘Join us in the streets of London for our National March for Palestine on Saturday December 9 to call for a full ceasefire and an end to the war on Gaza.’
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Thousands of protestors and counter-protesters have been seen in the capital in previous weekends.
The Metropolitan Police tweeted that a man had been arrested on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence.
‘As the march formed up, officers identified a man with a placard making comparisons between Israel and Nazi Germany,’ the force said.
‘He has been arrested on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence.
Earlier, the Met Police said that protesters must stick to the agreed route, under Section 12 of the Public Order Act.
‘Further conditions are in place that mean speeches must end by 4pm and the assembly at the end of the protest must end by 5pm,’ it said.
Hundreds of officers are policing the march, including officers from as far as Manchester who have been brought in for additional support.
As the demo reached Parliament, dozens of police officers surrounded the statue to Winston Churchill – as speeches supporting Palestine were voiced.
A booklet which previously heaped praise on terror organisation Hamas and branded them a ‘resistant movement’ was on sale without its pages on Hamas for the first time since the protests began.
An exclusion zone is in place prohibiting any protesters from assembling around the Israeli embassy
Thousands are thought to be in attendance at the march this afternoon
Thousands of protestors and counter-protesters have been seen in the capital in previous weekends
It previously said it showed ‘unconditional’ support for Hamas, said it won ‘wide popularity’ among Palestinians and went on to say: ‘We consider Hamas to be a resistance.’
The new version sees the pages that had praised Hamas removed.
It comes after the UK chose to abstain on a United Nations Security Council resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza – a motion that was vetoed by the US.
Earlier this week, pro-Palestine protesters were filmed chanting ‘from the river to the sea’ while disrupting an exclusive Chanel fashion show in Manchester that police had banned local people from watching from their balconies.
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