{"id":823775,"date":"2026-03-13T20:42:24","date_gmt":"2026-03-13T20:42:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/823775\/"},"modified":"2026-03-13T20:42:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T20:42:24","slug":"london-police-use-river-thames-to-separate-pro-iranian-protesters-from-opponents-amid-middle-east-tensions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/823775\/","title":{"rendered":"London Police use River Thames to separate pro-Iranian protesters from opponents amid Middle East tensions"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"London In an unprecedented move, the Metropolitan Police will use the River Thames to separate pro-Iranian protesters from counterdemonstrators in central London this Sunday, as the city braces for what police have described as a \u201chighly volatile\u201d situation.Interior minister Shabana Mahmood approved the Met\u2019s request to ban the annual Al-Quds Day march, organised by the Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC), citing escalating tensions due to the ongoing conflict in Iran and the risk of serious public disorder. While the march is banned, the IHRC plans to hold a static rally on the south bank of the Thames to press for \u201cPalestinian liberation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thames as a tactical divide<\/p>\n

Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said the River Thames would serve as a physical barrier between the two sides \u2014 a tactic never used before by the Met. The al-Quds rally will be confined to the Albert Embankment, while counterprotests, including groups opposed to the Iranian regime, pro-Israeli supporters, and exiled Iranian volunteers, will gather near Millbank. Lambeth Bridge will be closed to ensure separation, and marine policing units will patrol the river.\u201cThis is a unique set of circumstances, and we need a unique tactical plan to keep people apart while allowing lawful protest,\u201d Adelekan said.<\/p>\n

Heavy police presence<\/p>\n

More than 1,000 officers from London and other forces are expected to patrol the area, with backup on standby. Police anticipate around 12,000 participants, although numbers could swell given recent events in the Middle East. Adelekan warned that while the measures aim to reduce risk, \u201cthere is no guarantee disorder will not take place.\u201d<\/p>\n

Counterprotests mobilise<\/p>\n

The counterprotests include Stop the Hate, a Jewish group campaigning against antisemitism at pro-Palestinian rallies, the Lion Guard of Iran, and the Free Iranian Coalition. These groups plan to make their presence felt on the north bank of the Thames.Massoud Shadjareh, chairman of IHRC, has openly expressed support for Iran\u2019s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, calling on participants to join the Al-Quds rally. Police highlighted an \u201cintelligence gap\u201d as organisers did not provide a full list of speakers or attendees, complicating risk assessments.<\/p>\n

Zero tolerance on hate crime<\/p>\n

Adelekan emphasised that while freedom of speech will be respected, there is \u201czero tolerance for hate crime,\u201d and any participant crossing the line will face arrest.The Met said the scale and sophistication of policing deployed for Sunday\u2019s events illustrate the \u201cunique\u201d nature of the current situation and a first-of-its-kind approach to preventing clashes amid global tensions spilling onto London streets.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In an unprecedented move, the Metropolitan Police will use the River Thames to separate pro-Iranian protesters from counterdemonstrators…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":823776,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[7757],"tags":[236886,748,393,4884,236885,257,40178,74513,236884,134,16,15],"class_list":["post-823775","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-london","tag-al-quds-day-march","tag-britain","tag-england","tag-great-britain","tag-islamic-human-rights-commission","tag-london","tag-london-police","tag-middle-east-tensions","tag-pro-iranian-protesters","tag-river-thames","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116223813107886980","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/823775","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=823775"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/823775\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/823776"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=823775"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=823775"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=823775"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}