More than half a million march in London to demand lasting peace in Gaza

Hundreds of thousands of pro-Palestine demonstrators took to the streets of central London on Saturday, calling for lasting peace in Gaza, a day after the ceasefire took effect.

According to the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), which organised the demonstrations against Israel’s genocide in Gaza along with the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Muslim Association of Britain, Friends of Al Aqsa and Palestinian Forum in Britain among others, more than 600,000 people joined the march.

PSC director Ben Jamal said that the plan put forward by US President Donald Trump was “not a plan for enduring peace”, adding that it fails to address “the root cause of violence”.

He vowed that demonstrations would continue “until the Palestinian people are finally free", even as Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced new measures to restrict demonstrations, saying they had caused fear within the Jewish community. 

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the government was considering potential action against specific chants used at pro-Palestine rallies.

Saturday’s protest marked the 32nd national demonstration since Israel’s military campaign began, PSC said.

Protestors carried Palestinian flags, banners calling for an end to UK arms sales to Israel and placards demanding accountability. 

The protests come after the US-brokered ceasefire took effect on Friday, easing more than two years of bombardment by Israel that has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians since October 2023. 

The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory in September said Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli military on Friday announced it had begun preparations to “partially” pull back troops.

According to the initial stages of the deal, Israel will withdraw to a designated line, and Hamas will release around 20 living captives, along with the bodies of about 25 others.

Israeli Army Radio on Friday announced that the interior ministry in Israel has published the names of 250 Palestinian captives who will be released as part of the ceasefire agreement.

The report said that 100 of these Palestinians held in prisons will be allowed to leave for the West Bank, and five will head to Jerusalem. 

The US military on Saturday said following the announcement of the ceasefire, Israel had completed the first phase of withdrawal from Gaza.

However, despite the ceasefire, Israeli forces have killed at least 17 Palestinians and wounded 71 others in the past 24 hours, according to the Palestinian health ministry.

Israeli forces also shelled areas across the Gaza Strip.

The truce officially began in the early hours of Friday, after receiving final approval from the Israeli government. However, air strikes, artillery fire and gunshots were reported in Gaza City and Khan Younis. 

The United Nations has said that 170,000 metric tons of humanitarian aid have already been positioned in neighbouring countries such as Jordan and Egypt and that officials were awaiting permission from Israeli forces to restart their work. 

Unicef on Friday called for all crossings into Gaza to be opened, saying children in the territory were especially vulnerable because they have gone without proper food for long periods. 

Gaza's civil defence has said that some 9,500 people are still missing under the rubble across Gaza and its teams have begun rescue operations, recovering the bodies of some 155 people so far. 

According to the agency, 500,000 displaced Palestinians have arrived in  Gaza City since the ceasefire took hold on Friday. People have erected makeshift tents on the rubble, but lack adequate shelter as aid is not due to enter the Strip until tomorrow.

Some 700,000 people were displaced from Gaza City and the north by intense Israeli bombardment and raids in the region.

Gaza’s Government Media Office has called for a war crimes probe and asked for "the international community, the United Nations, all international and legal organisations, and the International Criminal Court to hold the leaders of Israel accountable and to not grant them any political or legal immunity".

The media office said it wanted the formation of an independent international committee to investigate war crimes and genocide and ensure the return and compensation of all displaced people.