Thousands of protesters expected in London for Unite the Kingdom and pro-Palestine rallies
Police expect 50,000 people at the far-right march and 30,000 at the pro-Palestinian rally as they use live facial recognition for the first time.
- Tens of thousands of people are expected in London on Saturday for two major demonstrations, prompting a £4.5 million Metropolitan Police operation managing the Unite the Kingdom march and the Palestine Nakba Day rally.
- Around 4,000 officers are on duty, with 660 drafted from other forces, responding to "continued global instability and tension," antisemitism concerns, and a severe terrorism threat level using Armoured vehicles and horses.
- The Crown Prosecution Service issued revised guidance urging prosecutors to assess whether online slogans or chants amount to hate crimes under the Public Order Act, which carries maximum sentences of seven years.
- Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer warned anyone attempting to "break the law and create chaos" should expect to "feel the full force of the law," while The Government blocked 11 foreign nationals described as "far-right agitators."
- Police are deploying live facial recognition technology for the first time in protest policing, though Surveillance Camera Commissioner Professor William Webster warned it is not "foolproof." The Metropolitan Police Federation noted many officers have had leave cancelled.
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14 Articles
Arab News
The Economic TimesLondon police brace for big far-right rally, counter-demo
LONDON: London police braced for their busiest day in years on Saturday, when tens of thousands of protesters were expected to attend the latest rally staged by far-right activist Tommy Robinson. The British capital’s Metropolitan Police said it would deploy 4,000 officers — alongside horses, dogs, drones and helicopters — to manage the march and a counter-demonstration merged
Met Police’s ‘unprecedented’ operation to prevent trouble at rival protests
Tens of thousands of people are expected to descend on London today for two major demonstrations. Source link : https://news.sky.com/story/thousands-of-protesters-expected-in-london-for-unite-the-kingdom-and-pro-palestine-rallies-13544546 Author : Publish date : 2026-05-16 04:20:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
Met Police's £4.5m operation as 80,000 protesters set to descend on London
Armoured vehicles, police horses, dogs, drones and helicopters will be deployed along with thousands of officers as the Met aims to avoid clashes between Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom march and the pro-Palestine Nakba Day rally
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