About 100,000 turn out in London for pro-Palestine rally
Protesters voice support for and solidarity with Palestine and demand end to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza About 100,000 demonstrators gathered in central London for a pro-Palestine rally, calling for an end to Israel's bombardment of Gaza. The march, which followed the 7 October surprise terror attack by Hamas, saw protesters holding signs reading “Freedom for Palestine” and “Stop bombing Gaza’s’ Gaza.’ The gathering took place as the Rafah border crossing was opened, allowing humanitarian aid to pass from Egypt into Gaza following intense negotiations involving the US, Israel, Egypt, and the UN. Despite ongoing controversy over the slogan's meaning, the Met police have stated that although it could be unlawful outside a synagogue or Jewish school, its use in a wider protest setting would not result in arrests.
Pubblicato : 2 anni fa di Rachel Hall in World
About 100,000 demonstrators have turned out in central London to show their support for and solidarity with Palestine and demand an end to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.
The march in Marble Arch in central London follows the 7 October surprise terror attack by Hamas, and saw protesters hold signs that read “Freedom for Palestine” and “Stop bombing Gaza”.
The Metropolitan police estimated about 100,000 people had turned out by 2pm on Saturday, with the front of the protest having moved along Park Lane, via Hyde Park Corner, Piccadilly and Trafalgar Square to reach Whitehall. By 3pm, protesters had reached Parliament Square.
The platform at Marble Arch tube station was briefly closed due to the crowds.
The gathering took place as the Rafah border crossing was opened on Saturday, allowing a trickle of humanitarian aid to pass from Egypt into Gaza, following a week of intense negotiations involving the US, Israel, Egypt and the UN.
The shipment of 20 trucks bringing medical supplies offered very limited relief to Gaza’s 2.3 million population, under fire and with barely anything to eat or drink. The UN secretary general, António Guterres, said “much, much more” is needed.
In London, some of the protesters chanted “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”, despite an ongoing controversy around the slogan’s meaning.
The home secretary, Suella Braverman, has previously labelled the slogan antisemitic and claimed that it is “widely understood” to call for the destruction of Israel.
Jewish groups have asked prosecutors to clarify if chanting the slogan is a criminal offence.
However, the slogan’s defenders describe it as a “longstanding protest chant” that calls for a homeland for the Palestinian people.
The Met has said that although the chant could be unlawful outside a synagogue or Jewish school, or addressed directly to a Jewish person, “its use in a wider protest setting, such as we anticipate this weekend, would not be an offence and would not result in arrests”.
A small group of protesters held a separate demonstration in central London on Saturday in which a large banner read “Muslim armies, rescue the people of Palestine.”
Speakers addressed the group of about 100 people in Arabic as they gathered in Balfour Mews, just off the path of the main protest.
The Met police said it was deploying 1,000 officers to police the demonstration, as well as extra patrols around synagogues and places of worship following a 1,350% increase in hate crimes against Jewish people and a 140% in Islamophobic incidents since Hamas’s attack.
The Met said there had been “pockets of disorder and some instances of hate speech” in the series of vigils, protests and public gatherings connected with Israel-Hamas, but most had “been lawful and [had] taken place without incident”.
Before the march on 21 October, the largest had been the previous Saturday, when 15 arrests were made, the Met said.
The war has sparked pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protests around the world. In Australia, thousands marched through central Sydney after police gave the event the green light, with rallies also held in Perth, Hobart and Brisbane.
Several hundred people also marched in the Italian capital, Rome, and protests were held in New York. Police in Berlin have banned a pro-Palestinian rally on Sunday.