London Police Deploy 4000 Officers for Far-Right and Pro-Palestinian Rallies

More than 4000 police officers will be deployed across London on Saturday to maintain order as a far-right rally and a pro-Palestinian demonstration converge in the city center. The far-right event is organized by activist Tommy Robinson, while the pro-Palestinian gathering marks Nakba Day, which commemorates the 1948 displacement of Palestinians during the creation of Israel.

Police said they expect around 50000 people at Robinson's "Unite the Kingdom" rally and 30000 at the pro-Palestine event. The force will use horses, dogs, drones and helicopters during the operation, which is also set to include live facial recognition for the first time in a policing action around a protest.

Officials have imposed conditions on the timings and routes of both demonstrations and have made organizers responsible for ensuring that invited speakers do not break anti-extremism or hate speech laws.

The interior ministry has blocked seven people from traveling to Britain from overseas for the far-right event. Robinson, born Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, drew up to 150000 people to a similarly themed rally in central London in September. Clashes occurred later that day, resulting in dozens of arrests and injuries to officers, with 50 unidentified suspects still being sought.

Groups that form the Palestine Coalition in Britain have held more than 33 large protests since October 2023. Police have made arrests at these events for racially and religiously aggravated public order offenses, stirring up racial hatred and other alleged crimes.

" The twin demonstrations follow a series of violent attacks targeting London's Jewish community. These incidents contributed to the UK's terrorism threat level being raised to "severe" two weeks ago.

A police spokesperson said the operation is expected to cost 4.5 million pounds, or about 6 million dollars. The spokesperson added that 660 officers would be brought in from outside the capital at a cost of 1.7 million pounds. The event coincides with the FA Cup Final at Wembley between Chelsea and Manchester City.

The spokesperson said that whenever significant numbers of football fans are in close proximity there are risks of disorder that need to be managed. The spokesperson also noted the history of football hooligan groups supporting causes associated with Robinson and said the lack of other professional football matches on Saturday increases the likelihood of those groups traveling to London.

"The scale of the operation is unprecedented in recent years," the spokesperson said.