Pro-Palestine Protesters Occupy London Train Stations, Clash With Police During Anti-Israel Demo

A protester waves a Palestinian flag as people take part in a sit-down protest inside Char
JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images
Kurt Zindulka

Clashes broke out with police as terror arrests were made during pro-Palestine demonstrations in London on Saturday as the politics of the Middle East continue to play out on British soil.

Thousands of anti-Israel activists once again took to the streets of the UK capital, staging sit-in protests in major thoroughfares of London, including Oxford Circus, which was blockaded by demonstrators until it was cleared by the Metropolitan Police. Protesters also ‘occupied’ key transport hubs including the Charing Cross and Waterloo train stations.

At least three protestors were arrested at Piccadilly Circus, including one who was arrested for allegedly displaying a placard that “could incite hatred, contrary to Section 12 of the Terrorism Act,” the Met said. Another was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police officer, while a third was arrested for allegedly breaching the Public Order Act.

Near the Israeli embassy on Kensington High Street, a speaker said according to the Daily Mail: “Victory to the Palestinian resistance, until there is a free Palestine from the river to the sea and Zionism, the repressive, monstrous state of Israel is smashed and torn down, brick by brick, rule by rule.

“The flag of Palestine, if we stand with Palestinians, if we build a revolutionary, anti-imperialist movement in our communities from the grassroots, if this movement stands with the people of Palestine, imagine in our lifetimes, someday, the flag of Palestine will fly high and proud above the city of Jerusalem.”

In another example of radical rhetoric being spouted, pro-Palestine protesters were filmed on a London Underground train chanting: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” and “There is only one solution, Intifada revolution.” The Met said that it had informed British Transport Police of the incident.

Meanwhile, outrage was sparked as police barricaded the Cenotaph National War Memorial, which also had its flags removed ahead of the protest.

Former Member of the House of Lords, Viscount Matt Ridley said: “As a great-grandson of the architect who designed the Cenotaph, I deeply resent the fact that it has to be fenced off and stripped of flags to appease yet again a baying mob that supports or excuses those who perpetrated a horrific atrocity.”

The Metropolitan Police said that the flags were removed by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, which they claimed was done annually for cleaning ahead of Armistice Day.

“Is it fenced off for cleaning too? Or might there be another reason?” questioned Reclaim Party leader Laurence Fox.

The controversy comes ahead of another planned pro-Palestine demonstration next weekend on Armistice Day when Britons honour fallen soldiers who died in the service of their country. While Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has criticised the plans to hold a conflicting protest for Gaza, the government has so far refused to ban the demonstration like other European countries such as France and Germany have done over the past month.

“Our Prime Minister should simply say that we will block the pro-Palestine rally from taking place on Armistice Day. But he won’t because he is gutless,” said Brexit leader Nigel Farage.

Follow Kurt Zindulka on Twitter: or e-mail to: kzindulka@breitbart.com

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