LONDON, March 11 - British police announced a ban on the planned Al Quds march in central London, citing the likelihood of "extreme tensions" between participants and counter-protesters as well as perceived risks linked to the Iranian regime during the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
The procession is organised each year by the Islamic Human Rights Commission, an organisation the police said has shown support for the Iranian regime. Authorities said the legal threshold to prohibit a protest in Britain is high and noted this was the first invocation of that power in 14 years, but concluded the risk of public disorder was "so severe" that banning the march was appropriate. The prohibition extends to any counter-protest marches planned for the same weekend.
The Islamic Human Rights Commission has publicly stated on the social media platform X that the event was being held in support of Palestinian liberation. Police pointed to previous Al Quds marches as having produced arrests for offences including support for proscribed terrorist organisations and anti-Semitic hate crimes, underlining the event's history of attracting law enforcement attention.
"We have taken into consideration the likely impact on protests of the volatile situation in the Middle East, with the Iranian regime attacking British allies and military bases overseas," the police statement published late on Tuesday said. "We must also consider that the security services have been publicly clear about the threats we are facing on UK soil from the Iranian regime."
Police cautioned that even with the ban in place they anticipated a "challenging, potentially violent weekend." The move follows prolonged scrutiny of how British police have handled repeated large pro-Palestinian demonstrations in London since the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas on Israel, with disputes over free speech, alleged support for a proscribed group and the consequences for the Jewish community.
Separately, police said that last week four men were arrested on suspicion of assisting Iran's intelligence services by conducting surveillance of individuals and locations associated with the Jewish community in London. That development was cited among the security concerns informing the decision to prohibit the march.
Authorities added that if the Islamic Human Rights Commission proceeds instead with a static assembly - an action for which the law does not provide a blanket ban - police would impose strict conditions on any such gathering.
Summary of the decision
- Al Quds march in central London banned on grounds of severe risk to public order.
- Ban also applies to counter-protests; static assemblies cannot be banned by law but would face strict conditions.
- Police cited past arrests at Al Quds events and recent arrests linked to alleged surveillance by individuals suspected of working with Iran's intelligence services.