Thousands of protesters took to the streets of London on Saturday to march against the ongoing attacks in Gaza.
More than 1,700 police officers are on duty for the march that goes through central London to Westminster.
Two arrests have so far been made “in relation to offensive placards being carried”, the Metropolitan Police said, after protesters were warned that they face arrest if they “intentionally push the limit” on placards and slogans.
The demonstration comes after the UK and US carried out dozens of airstrikes against Houthi bases in Yemen.
The Iran-backed rebel group has repeatedly targeted commercial shipping in the Red Sea in the wake of Israel’s war against Hamas following the October 7 attack.
Protesters carried banners placards saying: “Ceasefire now” and “End the siege”. Some were recorded seemingly chanting in favour of Yemen’s Houthi rebels, chanting: “Yemen, Yemen make us proud, turn another ship around.”
A number of conditions are in place for the march, the police said, with protesters not allowed to deviate from the route and speeches given a strict end time.
Home Secretary James Cleverly said he had been briefed by the Met’s commissioner Sir Mark Rowley on plans to “ensure order and safety” during the protest.
“I back them to use their powers to manage the protest and crack down on any criminality,” the MP said.
Speaking at Parliament Square, Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian ambassador to the UK, accused the British Government of “complicity” with Israel.
Mr Zomlot told the protesters Palestine was a “nation of freedom fighters”, saying: “I stand before you with a broken heart but not a broken spirit.”
He congratulated South Africa for bringing a genocide case against Israel at the UN’s International Court of Justice.
The seventh National March for Palestine also features an appearance by Little Amal, a giant puppet of a Syrian child refugee, which will join a group of Palestinian children.
The 3.5m puppet became an international symbol of human rights after she journeyed 8,000km from the Turkish-Syrian border to Manchester in July 2021.
Protesters will head to Parliament Square, via Fleet Street and Victoria Embankment, where speeches will take place.
It has been 100 days since the conflict began in Palestine
Pro-Palestinian activists and supporters hold olive branches as peace symbols
