by Two men were arrested during a demonstration for Palestine in London, one man for holding a placard with a swastika on it and another man for making a racist statement towards the counter-protesters.
At lunchtime on Saturday, the Metropolitan Police said on social media: “A few minutes ago (officers) saw a man in the crowd at Parliament Square with a placard with a swastika on it. He is now under arrest and on his way to custody.”
Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters have begun marching in central London demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.
The march, organized by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, left Parliament Square shortly before 1pm and passed through Whitehall before finishing at Hyde Park.
Protesters in Hyde Park could be heard chanting “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”.
Former Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbyn was among those holding banners in front of the crowd.
A large number of City Police could be seen around the square.
A pro-Palestine march became a permanent pro-Israel demonstration on Pall Mall.
Some of the crowd stopped in front of the police cordon to display a flag. Other protesters appeared to be walking past the demonstration peacefully while chanting.
Protesters continued to walk down Piccadilly towards Hyde Park.
The crowds chanted “Stop bombing Gaza, stop bombing children”.
A series of placards were displayed, including “Hands Gaza colonists” and “Free Palestine, remove the racists”.
Gathering in Hyde Park, pro-Palestinian protesters praised UK and US university students for their own protests against the Gaza conflict.
Speaking on stage, Palestinian ambassador to the UK Husam Zomlot said: “Change will come, campus by campus, city by city, country by country.
“The tide is turning because this is a global movement for change, a global declaration of the power of the community, and the power of the people.”
The group said it expects “hundreds of thousands of people” to attend the event in response to Israel’s “brutal attack” on Gaza.
A static demonstration organized by the pro-Israel group Enough is Enough was held at the same time in Pall Mall, along the route of the pro-Palestine march.
The PSC is the 13th national protest since the first was held on 9 October.
The Met said that since October 7 these types of protests have cost around £38.4 million and required the cancellation of 44,722 officer shifts as well as 6,399 officer rest days.
Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist said the force aimed to police “without fear or favour”, adding that protests in London were “a particular cause of fear and uncertainty in Jewish communities”.
He said the events had caused some Jews to stay away from central London on protest days, avoid the Tube, hide their identity or otherwise change their behaviour.
The third demonstration organized by the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism (CAA) was to take place on Saturday from 12pm to 2pm but was canceled the day before.
The organization said it canceled the “walk together” event – which is expected to attract thousands of people – after receiving threats and identifying “hostile actors” who posed a threat to Jewish safety.
Mr Twist said: “I know there are people who feel the solution is to ban these protests.
“The stakes for such a decision are extremely high – it requires a risk of serious public disorder of the kind we have not seen in this period of protest or in the last several years.”
The Met said all protests will be subject to conditions imposed under the Public Order Act limiting where protesters are allowed to go.
The PSC march must stick to a pre-agreed route through Whitehall, Piccadilly and Park Lane, the force added – as it stressed it was not allowed to enter areas in the vicinity of the Israeli Embassy, near Hyde Park.
The smaller Enough is Enough exhibition is limited to an area in Pall Mall.
Both protests must be concluded by 5pm, the Met said.
The now-cancelled CAA event was decided after the organisation’s founder, Gideon Falter, was threatened with arrest at a pro-Palestinian demonstration earlier this month, with one officer describing Mr Falter, who was wearing a kippah, as an “open Jew”.
The Met said it understood the event could be held later.
The force added that 415 arrests were made during protests – including 193 for anti-Semitic offenses and 15 terrorism arrests, mainly for alleged support of Hamas, a group banned in the UK.
Ben Jamal, the director of the PSC, said the march was “won by the love for the principle of dignity and the rights of all people”.
He added: “As the mass graves of Palestinians in Gaza are exposed, the call for an immediate ceasefire and an end to arms sales to Israel is now supported across the political mainstream and by a large section of the British public. .
“The people who are marching know that they are on the right side of history.”
