Chants of “1,2,3,4, occupation no more” and “Terrorist flags off our streets” battled it out between Quds Day marchers and a counter protest organised by pro-Israel activists outside the Saudi Arabian Embassy in London on Sunday afternoon.
Quds Day was initiated by the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1979 to oppose Zionism and the existence of Israel. It has often been the rallying point for antisemitic demonstrations.
This year’s protest was notable for the high number of far-right activists present, who at one point were roadblocked onto a separate street by the police in order to separate them from the main march.
The Saudi Embassy was said to be chosen as the starting point by march organisers, the Islamic Human Rights Commission, on the basis that “Riyadh’s growing support for the Zionist regime has had the effect of isolating the Palestinians and giving Israel the green light to accelerate its injustices.”
The march and counter-protest took place peacefully, with Quds Day marchers singing a uniquely British take on the “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” chant that included the additional added line “We’ll be sitting in Al-Quds, we’ll have a cup of tea.”
The “Stand Against Hate, Stand Against Hezbollah” counter-protest organised by the Zionist Federation of Great Britain and Ireland included Israeli music blasted over a large sound system and featured speeches from a range of speakers, including counter-extremist activist and radio talk show host Maajid Nawaz.
In advance of the march, a spokesperson for London Mayor Sadiq Khan said: “Antisemitism or hate crime of any kind has no place in our city or in our society.”
“Sadiq has written to the home secretary to raise his deep concerns about the support shown for Hezbollah at the annual Al-Quds Day march. He has called on him to urgently reconsider his predecessor’s decision not to take action to stop this.”
The second area of concern focused on fear from all sides that far-right extremists would attempt to infiltrate the Zionist Federation’s counter-protest. A federation representative told The Post after the protest that no such infiltration had occurred.
The Metropolitan Police stated that there had been one arrest at the demonstration for possession of a noxious substance.
