London saw thousands of people participating in a pro-Palestinian march calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. The demonstration took place with protesters carrying banners with the phrase “ceasefire now” and a giant puppet of a Syrian child refugee named Little Amal, who was part of the march to draw attention to child refugees. The event was organised in 30 countries as part of a global day of action.
Six arrests have been made for various alleged offences, including two for offensive placards, one for having stickers to be used for criminal damage, and the other three under the Terrorism Act. More than 1,700 police officers were present to manage the march from London’s commercial centre to Westminster. The Metropolitan Police had handed out flyers to protesters, warning that they must “stay on the right side of the law.”
This is the seventh national pro-Palestinian march, with previous ones being held in London, which was attended by tens of thousands of mostly peaceful people. There have been several arrests on a range of public order offences, including public chanting or holding placards with anti-Semitic slogans and supporting Hamas, which is a banned terrorist organisation within the UK.
Home Secretary James Cleverly has mentioned that he has been briefed by Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley about the force’s plans to “ensure order and safety” on Saturday. He stated that he supports them using their powers to “manage the protest” and prevent any criminal activities.
The march followed the unprecedented Hamas attacks on southern Israel on 7 October that led to approximately 1,300 deaths and more than 240 kidnappings. Israel’s retaliatory bombing and subsequent ground campaign have resulted in over 23,000 Gazan deaths, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. There will be a rally in support of Israel in Trafalgar Square on Sunday, with London being one of 30 countries participating in the Global Day of Action protests
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