More than 1,000 extra officers are being drafted in from across the country this weekend as part of a vast operation to police a pro-Palestine protest on Armistice Day.
Exclusion zones, facial recognition technology and reinforcements from other police forces are among the measures likely be deployed as the Metropolitan Police vows to use every power at its disposal to stop Remembrance commemorations from being disrupted.
Officers from every region have answered calls to help police during Saturday’s rally, which organisers expect to be one of the “biggest political demonstrations in British history”.
Up to 100,000 people could turn out for the event calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, with fears they could clash with far-right counter protesters also expected to descend on London.
The event has sparked a fierce debate after Met commissioner Sir Mark Rowley resisted political pressure from Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman to ban the protest, which was branded “provocative” and “disrespectful” amid fears it could disrupt Remembrance weekend.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) revealed that London’s police force will be bolstered by a total of 1,000 extra officers across the weekend, with reinforcements working on both Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday.
The pro-Palestine protest is kicking off around two miles from Whitehall at midday – an hour after two-minutes silence is observed at 11am. However far-right groups have pledged to “protect” the Cenotaph, including English Defence League founder Tommy Robinson.
Speaking after the home secretary accused the country’s biggest force of bias in its response to pro-Palestine demonstrations, the chair of the NPCC, insisted police have acted “without fear or favour”.
Chief Constable Gavin Stephens said: “In policing we need the space to make difficult operational decisions in an independent manner.
“The decisions that we take are not easy ones, but we do so impartially, without fear or favour, and in line with both the law and our authorised professional practice.”
Sir Mark Rowley has defended his decision to allow the protest to continue— (PA Wire)
Mr Stephens said it is “really important that the public debate doesn’t feature in our operational decision making” because it would “fundamentally undermine” how policing works in the UK.
He admitted that if right-wing groups stage counter demonstrations it will place “additional requirements” on Saturday’s policing operation.
He added: “We will facilitate that peaceful protest as well. Because those are the freedoms of this country that we are here to protect.”
NPCC gold lead Chief Constable Chris Haward also defended Sir Mark’s decision to let the pro-Palestine protest go ahead, noting most demonstrations since the Middle Eastern conflict broke out had taken place “peacefully and without issue”.
In 67 demonstrations outside London between 2 and 5 November just eight arrests were made. According to the Met, 57 people have been arrested for public order offences including violence during protests in the capital since the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October.
“Even if you ban the march you cannot ban the assembly. You will still expect to have 100,000 people, maybe more, turning up, who will then be in a static position,” he said.
“And I think in terms of our freedom of speech and public order legislation…what is offensive does not mean it’s unlawful. And those are the fine lines we have to police within.
“The threshold [to ban a march] is extremely high. It is about serious violence and not about the words that might be chanted.
“And so that call is for each commander and police force dependent on the circumstances. It is very rarely used and has not been used for over a decade.”
Last week’s pro-Palestine demonstration in Trafalgar Square— (EPA)
The Met has yet to announce full details of its policing plan for Saturday which will see protesters led by a coalition of groups, including the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, gather at Hyde Park and march to the US embassy in Vauxhall, south of the Thames.
Measures deployed in recent weeks have included exclusion zones, with protesters blocked from an area outside the Israeli embassy. It is possible the force could deploy similar tactics in areas around Whitehall and the Cenotaph on Saturday.
Retrospective facial recognition has also been used by officers, including counterterror police, to root out any extremists or people showing support for proscribed terrorist groups like Hamas.
Some 1,600 officers were deployed at last week’s demonstration, which saw thousands flock to Trafalgar Square, with a further 170 officers drafted in from other forces via mutual aid agreements. Six people were charged and four officers were injured at the rally after fireworks were aimed at police.
Rick Prior, vice chairman of the Met Police Federation, said the force is expecting a “very large” police operation this week, with scores of officers brought back from leave to police the event.
“The stakes are high and the commissioner, like all of us, wants the weekend to go off peacefully. We don’t want disorder,” he told The Independent.
A member of the armed services gives a salute at the Cenotaph on Whitehall on Armistice Day 2020— (PA Archive)
He said he did not want to see officers injured, adding it would be “tragic” if mourners were not able to pay their respects in peace on Remembrance weekend.
He said: “My concern is for the officers that I represent. My colleagues that are potentially going to be involved with a good deal of public disorder. I worry about their wellbeing.”
He also noted that the weekly demonstrations were a “big drain” on already strained police resources.
“For every officer taken away for a 12-hour shift at the protest, they are not working with their communities. The bottom line is the people of London are also feeling the effects of these weekly large gatherings and protests,” he added.
British Transport Police will also have enhanced patrols across the rail network to “provide a visible reassurance to the public and to take swift action should any issues arise” as thousands travel to the capital.
