LONDON / PNN — Report by Roddy Keenan

More than 250,000 people marched through London on Saturday in support of Palestinians, calling for an end to Israel’s war in Gaza and urging the British government to halt its military and political support for Israel.

The demonstration concluded near the British prime minister’s official residence at 10 Downing Street, where speakers addressed the crowd. Participants also observed a two-minute silence in memory of Palestinians killed in Gaza.

The march came as Palestinians marked three years since the outbreak of the war in Gaza in October 2023. Demonstrators carried placards reading “Free Palestine,” “Stop Arming Israel” and “End the Genocide,” expressing solidarity with Palestinians and demanding stronger action from the British government.

Aimee Shalan, director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, told Agence France-Presse that recent British sanctions related to settler violence did not go far enough.

The campaign called for broader measures, including sanctions against Israel and a comprehensive arms embargo, according to the organisation.

Zarah Sultana, a member of the British Parliament, accused the government of complicity in what she described as genocide, occupation and apartheid against Palestinians. She criticised the continued arms trade with Israel and the maintenance of diplomatic relations with its government.

Despite a ceasefire declared a year earlier, the original report said, Palestinians continued to be killed in Gaza. More than 1,400 Palestinians had been killed in the territory during that period, while United Nations figures cited in the report recorded 230 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the occupied West Bank during 2025.

More than 70,000 Palestinians had also been reported killed in Gaza since October 2023, according to figures cited by the report. The actual death toll may be higher, according to organisations that have raised concerns about the difficulties of documenting deaths during the war.

Palestinian Ambassador to the United Kingdom Husam Zomlot shared a video of the march on social media, thanking participants for their continued support.

“Three years on, Israel’s atrocities in Gaza and the West Bank continue, and so does the solidarity of the British people. Louder, bigger and not going anywhere. Thank you all,” he said.

The march was organised by the Palestine Coalition, which includes the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Friends of Al-Aqsa, Stop the War Coalition, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, the Muslim Association of Britain and the Palestinian Forum in Britain.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrations and events were also held across Scotland, Wales and Ireland during the weekend, drawing tens of thousands of participants, according to the report.