UK: Tens of thousands march in London for Gaza ceasefire in defiance of Rishi Sunak

Tens of thousands of people attended Saturday's pro-Palestine march in central London to oppose Britain's continued support for Israel's war in Gaza as calls for a ceasefire continue to mount.

Among the protesters were Jewish activists who marched in defiance of claims made by politicians and Jewish officials that London becomes a "no-go zone" for Britain's Jewish community when marches take place in the capital.

Marchers began their protest at Hyde Park Corner, where they were met with a heavy police presence as the London Metropolitan Police faces continued pressure to "manage" the Palestine protests. 

Other police forces from across the United Kingdom were bought in to London to support the Metropolitan Police.

Weaving their way through central London, marchers continued to call for a ceasefire in Gaza and chanted "free Palestine" and "from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free", which calls for the equal rights for Palestinians living between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean. 

David, a Jewish protester, came to the march with the Jewish bloc wearing a banner around his neck that read: "Jews against Gaza genocide."

"London is not a no-go zone for Jews," said David, who came from south London, in reference to comments by a government official earlier in the week.

"There are thousands of Jews marching here today, and it is pretty safe for them and countless others who are marching against the genocide.

The comments by the official in Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Tory government "were nonsense, and figures like him [Sunak] will always try to divide people. He did it with refugees and will probably do it against other vulnerable groups."

For the past six months, hundreds of thousands of protesters have attended rallies in central London and elsewhere in the UK since Israel began its bombardment of the besieged territory to demand a ceasefire in Gaza.

Campaigners have also called for boycotts of retailers and companies, such as Barclays Bank and McDonald's, that they accuse of profiteering from Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories. 

Some marchers also wore placards that called out Sunak, who made a speech against extremism last week and said: "Don't let the extremists hijack your marches."

Paul Woof came to the protest with a placard asking: "Do we look like extremists?"

"This sign is a small protest against the Tory government’s attempt to portray this protest and many others similar to this one as being led by extremists," said Woof, who has been taking part in protests for several weeks.

"I think they should come down and witness the protest and see for themselves what kind of people come to the protests."

'Politicians like Rishi Sunak are trying to divide us, but that has not stopped people coming to the protests and participating in campaigns like boycotts to support the people of Palestine'

- Ismail Patel, Friends of Al-Aqsa

Saturday's march was organised by a coalition of pro-Palestine groups, including the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Friends of Al Aqsa (FOA) group, the Muslim Association of Britain and the Stop the War Coalition.

Ismail Patel, who heads FOA, said the protests will continue until a political solution is reached for the people of Gaza.

"People have come in their thousands and will continue to do so until a political solution is reached," Patel said.

"Politicians like Rishi Sunak are trying to divide us, but that has not stopped people coming to the protests and participating in campaigns like boycotts to support the people of Palestine.

"We have noticed that more people from the Muslim community are reaching out to us to get advice on how to participate in our boycott campaigns against dates grown in illegal Israeli settlements."

The march ended outside the US embassy, where speakers also condemned US President Joe Biden's plans to build a port to deliver aid to Gaza, calling on him to put pressure on the Israelis to allow for more aid into the enclave. 

Among the speakers was singer Charlotte Church, who told MEE that she has been attending fundraisers and marches in support of Palestinians in Gaza. 

"I am here today for the people of Gaza, who are weathering and going through the worst thing that I've ever seen in my life," said Church.

Commenting on concerns of a British government crackdown on protests, Church said: "This idea that we are extremist or radical - every single event I've been to for Palestine has been so full of emotion, love, sorrow and compassion."