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Rival London Marches Kept Apart by Large Police Operation With Few Clashes

Heavy policing signaled a durable far-right street movement reshaping UK politics.

Overview

  • Metropolitan Police, which mounted a large operation on Saturday, kept far-right and pro-Palestine marches physically separate in central London.
  • No major violence was reported, with arrests ranging from 11 to 43 in differing tallies from police updates and later reports.
  • Crowd counts diverged: police put the Tommy Robinson–led march near 60,000, while pro-Palestine organizers claimed about 250,000 and authorities estimated roughly 20,000.
  • The operation used about 4,000 officers with drones, horses and facial-recognition cameras, and police restricted chants such as “intifada” while border officials barred 11 foreign far-right activists.
  • Robinson urged supporters to “get involved” in what he called the “Battle of the United Kingdom,” as reporting linked the turnout to Labour’s recent turmoil and momentum for Reform UK.