11 arrests made as student pro-Palestine march clashes with counter-protestors near UCL

Eleven people were arrested across London following clashes between pro-Palestine students and counter-protestors.

The student-led demonstration went ahead on 7th October, the third anniversary of Hamas’ attacks on Israel, despite the Met’s plea for it to take place on a different day, due to concerns over the scheduled date’s implication for the Jewish community.

The march began at 12pm at Lincoln’s Inn Fields, passing through Kingsway Road in Holborn and ending at Russell Square.

Police insisted that the march keep moving forward and protestors remove all face coverings.

Restrictions put in place under the Public Order Act by the Met required demonstrators to complete the rally by 2pm. 

Five of the day’s arrests were made outside the Board of Deputies of British Jews for incitement of racial hatred in what the police called a “spontaneous protest.”

Officers arrested four more people at a student-led pro-Palestine protest and another person at a counter-protest for breaching the Public Order Act.

The march clashed multiple times with pro-Israel counter protestors, who were heard shouting “scumbags.”

Activists waved Palestinian flags and signs such as “keep boycotting” and “divestment is inevitable,” while chanting “free, free Palestine.”

A banner reading “holocaust survivor descendants against Gaza genocide” was held up throughout the march.

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Pro-Israel counter-protestors’ slogans included “Zionism is beautiful” and “You are terrorist supporters.”  

The main protest was organised as part of an ‘inter-university’ march organised by the University of London Coalition.

The group’s aim is to coordinate activism in opposition to London universities who it alleges are “complicit in militarising our campuses.”

The days leading up to the protest saw an outcry of criticism from leading government figures. 

Defence Secretary Wes Streeting called it “shameful”, whilst Education Secretary Lucy Powell insisted that students needed “to show compassion and protest on another day.”

Despite opposition to the protest taking place, the Met said it was unable to ban the protest due to the perceived low risk of serious public disorder.

Another major pro-Palestine demonstration is set to take place in London on Saturday, organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign.

The Israeli Embassy has been contacted for comment.