London witnessed a gathering on Saturday of tens of thousands of protesters demanding a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas, while in Paris, thousands of demonstrators defied a ban to participate in a march.
Expressing support for Palestinians is allowed in Britain but praising Hamas, a banned terrorist organisation in the UK, is not.
The Met said officers would intervene if protesters used the word “jihad” in chants.
The UK government’s stance on refraining from calling for a ceasefire is in line with the position of the United States, both say Israel has the right to defend itself within international law.
A banned march in Paris
Thousands of demonstrators protested in Paris on Saturday in a banned march in “support of the Palestinian people” AFP correspondents saw.
A large contingent of police blocked marchers in a central part of the capital.
Among the protesters were elected officials wearing tricolor scarves, including a green MP and a far-left lawmaker.
“(The need for) a ceasefire is urgent, to stop killing women, children, and men,” said the deputy mayor of the central town of Corbeil-Essonnes, Elsa Toure.
An administrative court on Saturday upheld the ban on the demonstration, citing “the serious risk of disturbing public order” amid “heightened tensions linked to the events in the Gaza Strip with a rise in anti-Semitic acts in France.”
Katrine Dige Houmøller, with AFP
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