More than 110,000 people protesting against immigration have marched through the United Kingdom’s capital, London, in one of the country’s biggest right-wing demonstrations, with some protesters clashing with the police and wounding at least 26 officers.
London’s streets turned into a stage for Britain’s anxieties on Saturday, as far-right activist Tommy Robinson drew a crowd count in six figures for the anti immigrant “Unite the Kingdom” rally. Tens of thousands of people marched, leading to sporadic clashes with police.
The marchers came to London by train and coach for what was called a “festival of free speech,” but speeches during the event spread racist conspiracy theories and anti-Muslim comments across Whitehall, The Guardian reported.
Police said some officers were punched, kicked, and hit by bottles thrown from the edges of the “Unite the Kingdom” rally. More than 1,000 officers were deployed, with reinforcements in helmets and riot shields sent in when needed, as per a report by news agency Associated Press.
According to police, the crowd count was estimated at 1,10,000 to 1,50,000 people, much larger than expected. However, it was still smaller than the pro-Palestinian march in November 2023 that drew a crowd count of about 300,000 people.
Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, founded the nationalist and anti-Islam English Defense League and is one of the most influential far-right figures in Britain.
“There’s something beautiful about being British, and what I see happening here is a destruction of Britain, initially a slow erosion, but rapidly increasing erosion of Britain with massive uncontrolled migration,” he said.
Robinson told the crowd in a hoarse voice that migrants now had more rights in court than the “British public, the people that built this nation.”
The marches come at a time when the UK has been divided by debate over migrants crossing the English Channel in overcrowded inflatable boats to arrive on shore without authorisation.
UK flags have proliferated this summer across the UK – at events and on village lampposts – in what some have said is a show of national pride and others said reflects a tilt toward nationalism.
Supporters held signs saying “stop the boats,” “send them home,” and “enough is enough, save our children.”
At the counterprotest, the crowd held signs saying “refugees welcome” and “smash the far right,” and shouted “stand up, fight back.”
Robinson supporters chanted crude refrains about UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, leader of the center-left Labour Party, and also shouted messages of support for slain US conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Several speakers paid tribute to Kirk, who was remembered in a moment of silence, followed by a bagpiper playing “Amazing Grace.”
One demonstrator held a sign saying: “Freedom of speech is dead. RIP Charlie Kirk.”
Counterprotesters demonstrate against a rally by Tommy Robinson in London
The crowd at one point stretched from Big Ben across the River Thames and around the corner beyond Waterloo train station, a distance of about three-quarters of a mile (around a kilometer).
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. Officers had to use force to keep a crowd-control fence from being breached.
Counterprotesters heckled a man with blood pouring down his face who was being escorted by police from the group of Robinson supporters. It wasn’t immediately clear what happened to him.
While the crowd was large, it fell far short of one of the biggest recent marches when a pro-Palestinian rally drew an estimated 300,000 people in November 2023.
Robinson had planned a “Unite the Kingdom” rally last October, but couldn’t attend after being jailed for contempt of court for violating a 2021 High Court order barring him from repeating libelous allegations against a Syrian refugee who successfully sued him. He previously served jail time for assault and mortgage fraud.
Far right activist Tommy Robinson’s supporters clashed with police officers who were separating them from counterprotesters.
Several officers were punched, kicked, and struck by bottles tossed by people at the fringes of the “Unite the Kingdom” rally, Metropolitan Police said. Reinforcements with helmets and riot shields were deployed to support the 1,000-plus officers on duty.
Twenty six police officers were injured – four who were seriously hurt, including broken teeth and a concussion, a possible broken nose, and a spinal injury. At least 25 people were arrested for offenses including violent disorder, assaults, and criminal damage, and the investigation continues, police said.
“There is no doubt that many came to exercise their lawful right to protest, but there were many who came intent on violence,” Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist said. “They confronted officers, engaging in physical and verbal abuse and making a determined effort to breach cordons in place to keep everyone safe.”
The rally drew an estimated crowd of between 110,000 and 150,000 people, far surpassing expectations, police said. The rival “March Against Fascism” protest organised by Stand Up To Racism had about 5,000 marchers.
The march was billed as a demonstration in support of free speech – with much of the rhetoric by influencers and several far-right politicians from across Europe aimed largely at the perils of migration, a problem much of the continent is struggling to control.
“We are both subject to the same process of the great replacement of our European people by peoples coming from the south and of Muslim culture, you and we are being colonised by our former colonies,” far-right French politician Eric Zemmour said.
Elon Musk, the Tesla CEO and owner of the X platform, who has waded into British politics several times this year, was beamed in by video and condemned the left-leaning UK government.
