Met Police to deploy extra officers in Jewish and Muslim communities during London weekend protests
The Metropolitan Police will deploy extra officers in areas with “significant” Jewish and Muslim communities ahead of protests in the capital this weekend.
The force has said it will focus on ensuring events that traditionally occur the week after Remembrance Sunday can take place safely and securely without disruption.
Among the events are a Remembrance parade and ceremony organised by the Association of Jewish Ex-Servicemen and Women (AJEX) at the Cenotaph on Sunday, to honour thousands of Jewish soldiers who fought for freedom.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrations are also planned, together with a Just Stop Oil march around lunchtime in the South Bank area.
Police will also focus on smaller gatherings in boroughs outside central London, in the hope of reassuring people who “continue to experience increased uncertainty and fear” as a result of tensions sparked by the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.
The Met unveiled its plans for a “significant policing operation” after a series of weekend protests demanding an immediate ceasefire in the besieged Gaza Strip.
Clashes on Armistice Day last Saturday saw dozens of far-right protesters arrested, with more than 100 pro-Palestine demonstrators also detained.
Counter-protesters clashed with police in Parliament Square in central London on Armistice Day
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Thousands gather for pro-Palestinian march
The force was criticised for not arresting pro-Palestine supporters who scaled the Royal Artillery Memorial at Hyde Park Corner on Wednesday evening.
However, Met Police Commissioner Mark Rowley said that while the police recognised climbing the monument was “unfortunate” and “inflammatory in certain ways”, it was not illegal.
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Pro-Palestinian protesters climb war memorial
Commander Karen Findlay, who is leading this weekend’s operation, said: “While there is no single large central protest event on Saturday, our policing priorities remain the same across the local events that are due to take place.
“We are here to ensure that people can exercise their right to protest but make sure that is done lawfully, and that unreasonable disruption to the lives of other Londoners is kept to a minimum.”
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She said officers will “intervene swiftly” when they see an offence happening – as she vowed “there is no place for hate in London”.
“Hate crime will not be tolerated,” she added.
People climb on the Machine Gun Corps Memorial at Wellington Arch during a pro-Palestinian protest in London on Armistice Day
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Referring to the protesters who climbed the Royal Artillery Memorial, Commander Findlay said: “There will be situations where the actions of protesters are clearly inappropriate or disrespectful.”
She continued: “At a minimum they [officers] are to intervene decisively when they see behaviour which is obviously disrespectful, using their skills in dealing with the public as they do every day.”
A 15-year-old boy has died after “getting into difficulty” in a lake in southeast London, police say.
Officers and paramedics were called shortly after 3pm on Friday to Beckenham Place Park in Lewisham.
The Metropolitan Police said a boy “was recovered from the lake” at around 10.42pm the same day.
“He was taken to hospital where he was sadly pronounced dead. His death is being treated as unexpected but not believed to be suspicious,” according to the force.
The boy’s family has been told and are being supported by specialist officers.
The force originally said the child was 16 years old, but has since confirmed his age as 15.
In the earlier statement, officers said emergency services carried out a search and the park was evacuated.
Emergency teams were called to Beckenham Place Park on Friday afternoon
Beckenham Place Park, which borders the London borough of Bromley, covers around 240 acres, according to the park’s website.
The lake is described as 285 metres long, reaching depths of up to 3.5 metres.
It is designed as a swimming lake for open-water swimming and paddle boarding.
A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said on Friday: “We were called at 3.02pm this afternoon to reports of a person in the water.
“We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an incident response officer and members of our hazardous area response team.”
Emergency teams have not explained how the boy entered the water, or whether he was accompanied by others.
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