UK bans Iran-linked march to ‘prevent serious public disorder’

LONDON — The British government said Tuesday night it has approved a police ban on a march linked to the Iranian regime, citing fears there will be severe clashes between protesters and counter-protesters.

The annual Al Quds Day march, which has taken place since 1979, was due to be held on Sunday in central London.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said she agreed to the Metropolitan Police’s request to ban the march because she is “satisfied doing so is necessary to prevent serious public disorder, due to the scale of the protest and multiple counter-protests” in the context of the ongoing Middle East conflict.

It is the first time the Met Police has used its powers to ban protest marches since 2012.

Met Police Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said in a statement the planned march “raises unique risks and challenges” which include “high numbers of protestors and counter protestors coming together and the extreme tensions between different factions.”

“The context is so uniquely complex and the risks are so severe that placing conditions on the protest will not be sufficient to prevent it from resulting in serious public disorder” with the public, protestors and police officers facing risk of injury, he added.

Adelekan said the Met Police had consulted with Muslim and Jewish communities. Officers still face a “challenging, potentially violent weekend,” he added.

The Islamic Human Rights Commission, which organizes the march, condemned the decision and said it will go ahead with a static protest.

“If it was not clear already, the police have brazenly abandoned their sworn principle of policing without fear or favour,” a statement on their website said. “This is a politically charged desision [sic]; not one taken for the security of the people of London.”

Chief Secretary to the PM Darren Jones defended the ban, telling Sky News on Wednesday: “You can’t do anything illegal. You can’t incite hatred or violence, or cause physical damage.”