Pro-Palestine protesters took over London’s streets on the grim second anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attacks, blatantly ignoring the Prime Minister’s call for respect.
Flares Ignite Chaos at Tower Bridge
Videos all over social media show a small but fiery mob at Tower Bridge waving flares and choking the air with red and green smoke. Traffic ground to a halt on the iconic London landmark as protest chants rang out: “Get your hands off Palestine” and “Zionism is a crime.” Authorities have been contacted for comment as police scrambled to contain the disruption.
Defiant Student March Targets Top London Universities
Ignoring stern government warnings, hundreds of students wearing keffiyehs marched in an “Inter-University Protest,” hitting prestigious spots like King’s College London and SOAS.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer slammed the protests as “un-British” and urged students to call them off. A government source warned protesters to “demonstrate humanity” on such a sensitive day.
But the activists refused to back down. “We will not be intimidated by the state,” declared Haya Adam, an expelled SOAS student addressing the crowd near Bloomsbury. “It’s our responsibility to march today because it’s been over two years… of continuous forced starvation and massacres against our Palestinian brothers and sisters.”
Rising Tensions Amid Gaza Conflict
- The Israeli military offensive in Gaza has claimed some 67,000 Palestinian lives, according to health officials.
- The October 7 anniversary piles on the pressure, just days after a fatal stabbing attack outside a North London synagogue.
- Pro-Palestine group Intifada 87 planned a march to Downing Street, with police allowing protests to continue on Whitehall until 8pm.
Son of Holocaust Survivor Defends Students
Mark Etkind, whose family survived the Holocaust, condemned government attacks on student protesters. He drew chilling parallels between Gaza’s suffering and Jewish horrors in WWII.
“The idea this movement is anti-Semitic is completely untrue,” Etkind told the Standard. “The British Government is complicit in this genocide, sending weapons to Israel. Students and most Brits want that arms sale stopped now.”
Etkind marched wearing signs demanding: “Stop the genocide in Gaza.” He called for continued resistance against the violence.
Protests Spread Across the UK
London wasn’t the only hotspot today. Universities in Edinburgh and other cities saw demonstrations as nationwide tensions soared on this somber anniversary.
With the country divided and violence escalating, London remains the heart of fiery pro-Palestinian activism — defying government orders while filling the streets with passion, smoke, and defiance.
