Thousands of pro-Iranian protestors marched today on the US Embassy in London calling for an end to US and Israeli strikes in the region.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that one woman in her 60s has been arrested on suspicion of inciting racial hatred in relation to a placard.
It comes on the eighth day of the conflict in the Middle East, which saw Tehran strike Dubai airport and intense Iranian fire target the Gulf Arab states, as the US President Donald Trump promised it would hit Iran ‘very hard’.
Hundreds of protestors from Hands Off Iran, which opposes Western military intervention, and the counter protest, Stage for Freedom, which protests against the existing Iranian regime, made their way through the capital this afternoon.
There was a dramatic confrontation when a counter-demonstrator chanted ‘terrorist supporters and communist scum off our streets’ as the anti-war march made its way through central London.
Your Party MP Zarah Sultana spoke at the Stop the War and Hands off Iran demonstration at the US Embassy in London, saying ‘we will not be ignored again’ in a reference to the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq.
Police had to intervene to defuse a confrontation after a single counter protestor heckled the crowd passing Lambeth Bridge.
The man, wearing a Union Jack flag around his shoulders, was verbally abused, shouted at and filmed by those gathered.
The pro-Iranian regime protestors gathered outside the US embassy in London, with some chanting ‘victory to Iran’ and ‘death, death to the IDF’
Placards displayed pictures of the now dead Ayatollah, as well as flags of Iran, Lebanon and Palestine
The Stop the War coalition was out, protesting against US and Israeli involvement in the ongoing conflict with Iran
One demonstrator was seen holding a picture of the US President on fire, as well as making an apparent reference to an antisemitic conspiracy
Police had to intervene to defuse a confrontation after a single counter protestor heckled the crowd in a Union Jack flag
Another held aloft an image of the now dead Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei – a regime leader who killed thousands of his own Iranians earlier this year
Your Party MP Zarah Sultana spoke at the demonstration calling for an end to bombing in Iran outside the US Embassy in London
The anti-war protestors were based outside Westminster, where they held stalls and waved banners declaiming the Middle East conflict as ‘Trump’s wars’
The groups, criticising the US, UK and Israeli governments’ involvement in the Middle East conflict, are marching from Millbank to the United States embassy calling for an end to the military attacks on Iran.
The Metropolitan Police estimated that almost 4,000 people took part in the march through Westminster to the American embassy near Battersea Power Station.
Some are chanting ‘victory to Iran‘ – despite the regime being responsible for killing hundreds of thousands of its own people.
Police did not intervene as protestors chanted vile slogans including ‘death, death to the IDF’ and ‘victory to Iran’.
Protestors were seen carrying the flags of Iran, alongside Palestinian and Lebanese flags.
Former Labour MP Zarah Sultana addressed the anti-war crowd outside the US Embassy, saying ‘we will not be ignored again’.
Recalling the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, she told protesters: ‘Back then, we were told that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.
‘We were told that war would bring peace and democracy.
‘We were told that the war would protect Iraqis and protect the world, but the truth was very different.’
Speaking outside the US Embassy in Vauxhall on Saturday afternoon, the Your Party MP for Coventry South added: ‘The children of Baghdad deserve to grow up.
‘And 23 years ago, when we marched against the Iraq war, we were ignored.
‘We will not be ignored again, because history proved them right, and today, we raise our voices for peace, for justice and for a world where governments learn the lessons of the past.’
It comes after Iranian-backed Islamist militants in Lebanon, including Hezbollah, were struck by Israel this week.
Other controversial symbols, including the hammer and sickle were also spotted in the crowd.
Placards criticising the US and UK governments were also on display, with one sign praising the Iranian government for ‘fighting the Epstein regime’ – an apparent reference to the antisemitic conspiracy that the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein was an Israeli spy.
The protestors could be heard chanting ‘stop the bombing now, now, now’ and ‘hands off Iran’.
Action groups including the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), Stop The War, Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Muslim Association Of Britain, Palestinian Forum in Britain and Friends Of Al-Aqsa are leading the demo.
But counter-protestors are also on the march in London today, including Stage for Freedom, who are calling for the end of the regime.
The Metropolitan Police has imposed conditions requiring protesters to stay on designated routes and finish their post-march rallies by 5pm.
The Stage for Freedom demonstration against the Iranian government is marching from Whitehall to Kensington Road near Hyde Park in Knightsbridge, close to where the nation’s embassy is situated, this afternoon.
The Middle East has been plunged into chaos after a joint US and Israeli strike on Iran killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday.
In the days since, Tehran and its allies have retaliated across the region, targeting Israel, US bases in neighbouring Gulf states and sites critical to global oil and gas production.
In Bristol, similar protests were held this afternoon, with footage shared on social media showing tense confrontations between pro-Iranian protestors and anti-Iranian regime protestors, as well as the presence of mounted police.
Hundreds of people in Bristol took part in a pre-planned march and could be heard chanting ‘off our streets, off our streets’, as some struggled with police who were grappling to get the scene under control.
Local police said in a statement: ‘Officers are in Bristol city centre today as part of a policing operation in response to a protest and counter-protest.
‘Two groups have gathered at the Cenotaph, St Augustine’s Parade, and officers are on the scene. There are no road closures in place. Updates to come.’
At 1.53pm, Bristol police reported officers ‘faced resistance’ while facilitating the protest in the city centre, and were using ‘dispersal tactics’ to keep both sides of the demonstration separate.
There was a standoff at Union Street as Bristol police formed a human wall when the two rival groups faced each other.
Many marked vans and mounted officers blocked the route for about half an hour this afternoon as another march led by a group called ‘Bristol Patriots’ was challenged by hundreds of counter-protesters organised by a coalition of anti-fascism and anti-racist groups.
The march came to a halt near Broadmead Tesco at about 12.40pm, causing gridlock for drivers and buses trying to make their way around the city centre.
Avon and Somerset Police enacted special powers to disperse the crowds and ordered people to remove face coverings.
They added that officers are being deployed to ‘enable a peaceful protest and to ensure the safety of all in attendance and the general public.’
Last night, Iranian regime supporters violently clashed with monarchists in shocking scenes outside a London mosque on Friday night.
Scores of protesters on both sides gathered on opposite sides of the road close to the Islamic Centre of England (ICE) in Maida Vale at around 7.35pm.
Supporters of Reza Pahlavi, the son of the last king of Iran, were seen wrapped in the pre-1979 Islamic Revolution flag, which bears the image of a sun and lion.
They stood with individuals waving Israeli and American flags, as a group on the other side of the road, closest to the mosque, began exchanging verbal jabs with the group.
Footage showed the shouting intensifying from both groups – before seconds later erupting into physical blows on a zebra crossing.
Motorists were brought to a halt as protesters kicked and punched at their opponents, which left a 17-year-old boy with a head injury.
As quickly as the violence erupted, it soon subsided, with both groups retreating to their respective sides while continuing to shout at one another.
