Thousands of people rallied in central London on Saturday to mark the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian people, calling for an end to Israel’s occupation and urging the UK government to stop selling arms to Israel.
The march, held despite heavy rain, began at Hyde Park Corner and concluded with a rally in Whitehall.
The event was organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), alongside the Stop the War Coalition and several major trade unions. In a message posted on X, the PSC said: “Thousands out in the rain in London to march for Palestine … We demand our government #StopArmingIsrael and pressure it to stop committing genocide against the Palestinian people.”
Ben Jamal, director of the PSC, said in a video message that the UN created the day in 1977 to highlight that Palestinians “did not have their right of self-determination realized” and were living under “a system of brutal occupation”. He said the day had come to symbolise “the complete failure of the international community” to act.
Jamal noted that in 1977 there were “12,000 illegal settlers in East Jerusalem (and) the West Bank,” compared with “close to 750,000” today. He argued that granting “impunity” to Israel for “occupation and apartheid” had led “inevitably to the genocide we have all been witnessing.”
He also criticised a recent UN Security Council resolution, saying it “doesn’t support the implementation of international law … gives governance of Gaza to the US and gives the Palestinian people no say in how they are to be governed.” Jamal accused the UK government of “complicity” through both diplomatic backing and continuing arms exports to Israel.
The Metropolitan Police imposed conditions on the march, saying the measures were designed to balance the right to protest with the need to limit disruption across the capital.
The Palestinian Mission to the UK posted a message thanking supporters: “We would like to thank all the freedom-loving people in Britain for standing with us … Palestine will be free with your unwavering support and dedication.”
The UN designated 29 November as the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People in 1977, affirming support for their inalienable rights, including self-determination, national independence, sovereignty and the right of refugees to return to homes they were forced to leave in 1948.
The march comes amid ongoing violence in Gaza and the West Bank. Since October 2023, Israel’s attacks in Gaza have killed nearly 70,000 people, mostly women and children, and injured over 170,000 others. In November 2024, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Violence in the West Bank has also escalated since the outbreak of the Gaza war. More than 1,085 Palestinians have been killed and 10,700 injured in raids and attacks by Israeli forces and settlers, while more than 20,500 people have been arrested.
In July last year, the International Court of Justice issued a landmark advisory opinion declaring Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and calling for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
