Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters marched in central London on Saturday to call on the British government to call for a ceasefire after the Israeli military stepped up air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip, Reuters reported.

Pro-Palestinian protest in LondonPhoto: Marcin Nowak/LNP / Shutterstock Editorial / Profimedia

Aerial footage showed large crowds taking to the march organized by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, with the protest set to end outside the Houses of Parliament after passing Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Downing Street office.

Echoing Washington’s position, Sunak’s government did not call for a ceasefire, instead pleading for humanitarian pauses to allow aid to reach Gazans.

Britain has backed Israel’s right to self-defense after an attack by Hamas militants on October 7, which Israel says killed 1,400 people, mostly civilians.

“The superpowers are not doing enough now. This is why we are here: we demand a ceasefire, we demand Palestinian rights, the right to exist, to live, human rights, all our rights,” said protester Camille Revuelta.

“It’s not about Hamas. It’s about protecting Palestinian lives,” she added.

London police have been criticized in recent days for not being tougher on slogans chanted by some protesters during another pro-Palestinian march in the British capital last week, which drew about 100,000 people. This action was mostly peaceful, with only a few arrests.

Ahead of Saturday’s event, police warned that hate crime had no place and said 2,000 officers would be on duty across the city. Special restrictions were put in place to limit protests outside the Israeli embassy.

Earlier, British Foreign Minister James Cleverley called on the participants of the pro-Palestinian protests to beware of misinformation and manipulation.

Asked by a reporter if there was a risk that Iran or other foreign actors could hijack the protests to incite unrest, Cleverley said: “It’s perfectly possible to support the Palestinian people but also condemn Hamas.”

“But unfortunately, we’re seeing people being manipulated, misinformed, misrepresented, and unfortunately, I think a minority, a small minority, in these protests have a much more negative agenda.”