Pro-Palestine protester displaying swastika among arrests as tens of thousands march in London

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People displaying a swastika inside a Star of David and other Nazi symbols were among those arrested as tens of thousands of Pro-Palestine protesters took to the streets of London on Saturday.

Officers had made 18 arrests as of 7pm on Saturday evening, following what the force called a “significant policing operation”, but the Met stressed the “overwhelming majority” of demonstrators had protested lawfully.

The Metropolitan Police had issued a warning over the spreading of hate speech ahead of the latest major demonstration in the capital calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

Within minutes of the protesters gathering at Park Lane for the march to Whitehall, officers announced a man wielding a placard with Nazi symbols on it had been arrested on suspicion of inciting racial hatred.

It was among a series of handmade placards and banners held up by demonstrators, with some referencing the slogan “from the river to the sea”. Another placard displayed a picture of Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer under the word “genocide”, while one other had a picture of leaders of the G7 above the words “war criminals on the run”.

Ahead of the rally, the Met said more than 1,500 officers would be deployed over the weekend, with some handing out leaflets to provide “absolute clarity” on what would be deemed an offence.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said the leaflets set out “that anyone who is racist or incites hatred against any group should expect to be arrested. As should anyone who supports Hamas or any other banned organisation.” He added: “We will not tolerate anyone who celebrates or promotes acts of terrorism – such as the killing or kidnap of innocent people – or who spreads hate speech.”

Organisers Stop the War Coalition said that such a measure was “intrusive”, but asked anyone attending to avoid “any actions that might leave you or others around you open to arrest”. The group said in a statement: “We ask that all attending our marches respect these clear anti-racist principles, including in any signs or placards they choose to bring to the march.”

The Met said it also discovered a stall in Whitehall that was distributing literature featuring a swastika inside a Star of David after officers spotted the same literature at the demonstration. The four people staffing the stall have been arrested on suspicion of inciting racial hatred.

A man wearing a green headband with white Arabic script who was initially seen in a video was spotted by officers in Trafalgar Square and arrested on suspicion of supporting a proscribed organisation.

Two women seen on CCTV holding offensive placards were arrested for a racially aggravated public order offence as hundreds gathered at the smaller Hizb-ut-Tahrir protest at the Egyptian embassy on South Street in Mayfair.

It was the group’s first protest since 21 October, after which a video emerged showing a man chanting “jihad”. The Met said no offences were identified from the clip.

Remarking on the incident in preparation for this weekend’s protest, the force said: “It is a word that clearly causes upset and concern, but it’s always contextual. If we think people are chanting this to incite violence, terrorism or antisemitism – we will act decisively and quickly.”

At the start of the Hizb-ut-Tahrir rally on Saturday, those gathered were warned by an organiser: “Don’t come up with your own chants, follow what is on the stage, follow the chants from those who are chanting.” The crowd, made up of men, women and children, held signs that read “Muslim Armies! Liberate Palestine!” and “US & UK Hands Off The Middle East”.

A statement by the group said Muslim leaders “should not feel bound” by Western laws and borders, calling the latter “mere lines in the sand”.

Dr Abdul Wahid, of the UK executive committee of Hizb-ut-Tahrir, told the crowd liberation would mean a “system that allowed Muslim, Jew and Christian to live side by side in peace and respect with everyone having rights”.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Adelekan added that it was only “a minority [of protestors who] have crossed the line” over recent weeks.

It comes after weeks of pressure on the force over the handling of the now-regular demonstrations, with pressure from senior politicians for officers to come down harder on alleged displays of antisemitism.

Organisers rejected the label of “hate march” deployed by former home secretary Suella Braverman before she was sacked by Rishi Sunak, after a previous rally on Armistice Day saw scenes of violent disorder when far-right thugs clashed with officers.

A 90-minute march organised by the charity Campaign Against Antisemitism is also due to take place on Sunday, with around 40,000-50,000 people expected to attend.

On the first day of the four-day ceasefire on Friday, Hamas released 24 of the about 240 hostages taken during its 7 October attack on Israel which triggered the war, while Israel freed 39 Palestinians from prison. Those freed from captivity in Gaza were 13 Israelis, 10 Thai nationals and a citizen of the Philippines.

Under the agreement, Hamas will release one Israeli hostage for every three prisoners freed. However, the militants’ armed wing said on Saturday afternoon they have decided to delay the second round of hostage releases until Israel is committed to allowing aid trucks to enter northern Gaza.

It follows weeks of fighting and Israeli bombardments of Gaza during the conflict sparked by the Hamas incursion into southern Israel that saw 1,200 people killed.

DAC Adelekan said: “I would like to acknowledge the overwhelming majority who came into London today and exercised their right to protest lawfully.

“Regrettably, there was still a small minority who believed the law did not apply to them. Thanks to the efforts of our CCTV teams and other officers, a number of those are already in custody.

“Investigations into other offences are already under way and will continue in the coming days.”