A large pro-Palestinian march kicked off in London on Saturday following scuffles nearby between far-Right protesters and the police, who launched a major operation to avert clashes between the two rival groups.

The pro-Palestinian march, which is expected to attract thousands of people, has also drawn counter-protesters from Right-wing groups to the capital on what is Britain’s day of remembrance for war veterans.

London’s Metropolitan Police said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that they had faced aggression from counter-protesters who were in the city in “significant numbers”, adding that they would not allow them to confront the pro-Palestinian rally. “We will use all the powers and tactics available to us to prevent that from happening,” the police said.

The “National March for Palestine” is the latest in a series of rallies in the British capital to show support for the Palestinians and call for a ceasefire from Israel’s
bombardment of the Gaza Strip.

Ben Jamal, one of the organisers from the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), told Reuters up to a million people could join the rally. He said it would be peaceful, but acknowledged the “heightened situation today”.

As they gathered at the start point, pro-Palestinian protesters could be heard shouting “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”, a rallying cry which is viewed by many Jews as antisemitic and a call for Israel’s eradication.

The scuffles between police and the far-Right counter-protesters took place close to the Cenotaph war memorial earlier on Saturday, where some of the counter-protesters chanted: “We want our country back.”