LONDON (AP) — A London march organized by far-right activist Tommy Robinson drew more than 100,000 people and became unruly on Saturday as a small group of his supporters clashed with police officers who were separating them from counterprotesters.
Reinforcements with helmets and riot shields were deployed to support the 1,000-plus officers on duty.
Police estimated that Robinson drew about 110,000 people, while the rival “March Against Fascism” protest organized by Stand Up To Racism had about 5,000 marchers.
The marches had been mostly peaceful, but toward the late afternoon, “Unite the Kingdom” supporters threw items at the rival rally and tried to break through barriers set up to separate the groups, police said.
Counterprotesters heckled a man with blood pouring down his face who was being escorted by police from the group of Robinson supporters.
LONDON (AP) — Tommy Robinson, a far-right activist, organized a march in London that drew over 100,000 people. However, on Saturday, a small group of his supporters clashed with police officers who were separating them from counterprotesters, as the march descended into chaos…
According to Metropolitan Police, a number of officers were kicked, punched, and hit by bottles that were thrown by spectators at the edge of the “Unite the Kingdom” rally. To assist the more than 1,000 officers on duty, riot shields and helmet-wearing reinforcements were sent in.
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Although at least nine people were taken into custody, authorities said that numerous other criminals had been found and would face consequences.
About 110,000 people attended Robinson’s demonstration, according to police, compared to 5,000 people at Stand Up To Racism’s competing “March Against Fascism” demonstration.
theme of anti-immigration.
Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is one of the most prominent far-right figures in Britain and the founder of the nationalist and anti-Islam English Defense League.
Although the march was advertised as a protest in favor of free speech, many of the far-right politicians and influencers from throughout Europe focused their speeches on the dangers of migration, a problem that many parts of the continent are finding difficult to manage.
“You and we are being colonized by our former colonies, and we are both subject to the same process of our European people being greatly replaced by peoples from the south and of Muslim culture,” stated far-right French politician Eric Zemmour.
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Video showed Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and owner of the X platform, denouncing the left-leaning U.S. government after repeatedly entering British politics this year. K. The government.
He remarked, “There is something lovely about being British, and what I see happening here is the destruction of Britain, initially a slow erosion, but rapidly increasing erosion of Britain with massive uncontrolled migration.”.
“Migrants now have more rights in court than the British public, the people that built this nation,” Robinson said in a raspy voice to the audience. “.”.
The marches take place while the U.S. K. is polarized by the controversy surrounding migrants entering the country illegally in crowded inflatable boats across the English Channel.
This summer, after an Ethiopian man was arrested and later found guilty of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl in a London suburb, there were numerous anti-migrant demonstrations outside hotels that house asylum-seekers. A number of those demonstrations turned violent, and people were arrested.
A sea of flags.
The St. was carried by participants in the “Unite the Kingdom” march. George chanted “we want our country back” while holding the union jack, the state flag of the United Kingdom, and the red-and-white flag of England. “.”.
U. The K. Flags have been flying all over the United States this summer. K. . — at gatherings and on village lampposts — in what some have described as a display of patriotism and others as a sign of a tendency toward oneness.
“Enough is enough, save our children,” “stop the boats,” and “send them home” were among the signs held by supporters. “.”.
At the counterprotest, the public yelled “stand up, fight back” while holding signs that read “refugees welcome” and “smash the far right.”. “”.
Crude refrains about U were chanted by Robinson supporters. K. The leader of the center-left Labour Party, Prime Minister Keir Starmer, also yelled condolences for the deceased. A. Charlie Kirk is an activist for conservatism.
A bagpiper played “Amazing Grace” after a moment of silence in which several speakers honored Kirk. “.”.
One protester carried a sign that read, “Freedom of speech is dead.”. Goodbye, Charlie Kirk. “.”.
London blocks were crowded.
At one point, the crowd extended approximately three-quarters of a mile (one kilometer) from Big Ben across the River Thames and around the corner beyond Waterloo train station.
The marches had been largely nonviolent, but in the late afternoon, police said, supporters of “Unite the Kingdom” threw objects at the opposing rally and attempted to breach the barriers separating the groups. To prevent someone from breaking through a crowd-control fence, officers had to use force.
A police-escorted man with blood streaming down his face was heckled by counterprotesters from the Robinson supporter group. What happened to him was not immediately apparent.
The crowd was sizable, but it was still far smaller than one of the largest marches in recent memory, which drew an estimated 300,000 people in November 2023 for a pro-Palestinian rally.
Last October, Robinson had organized a rally called “Unite the Kingdom,” but he was unable to go because he was imprisoned for contempt of court for breaking a 2021 High Court order that prohibited him from making the same false accusations against a Syrian refugee who had sued him. He was previously imprisoned for mortgage fraud and assault.
