Clashes erupted in London on Saturday, leading to 25 arrests, after up to 150,000 people gathered for one of the largest-ever far-right protests in Britain, organized by activist Tommy Robinson.
Police reported that 26 officers were injured, four seriously, during attempts to control the crowds. Many participants were draped in English and British flags, amid several tense hours on the rally’s fringes.
The Metropolitan Police estimated that 110,000 to 150,000 people attended, which significantly exceeded the organizers’ estimates. The clashes reportedly began when some attendees tried to enter designated ‘sterile areas’ near counter-protesters.
Around 5,000 people participated in a Stand Up to Racism march, which started about a mile to the north. Approximately 1,000 police officers were deployed to keep the rival groups separated.
“There is no doubt that many came to exercise their lawful right to protest, but there were many who came intent on violence,” Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist remarked.
“They confronted officers, engaging in physical and verbal abuse and making determined efforts to breach cordons set to ensure safety.”
Arrests were made for violent disorder, assault, and other offenses, while officers sustained injuries including broken teeth, a possible broken nose, a concussion, and a prolapsed disc.
Interior Minister Shabana Mahmood condemned those who attacked and injured police officers, insisting that “anyone taking part in criminal activity will face the full force of the law.”
Protesters at Robinson’s latest “Unite the Kingdom” event marched over Westminster Bridge before gathering near Downing Street for speeches by far-right figures from Europe and North America, including billionaire X owner Elon Musk.
Anti-racism charity Hope Not Hate, which has monitored such rallies for over a decade, reported that several well-known far-right extremists, including Robinson, spoke on stage and were among the crowds.
Joe Mulhall, its director of Research, told the BBC it was “probably the largest far-right demonstration ever in Britain.”
King’s College London assistant public policy professor Georgios Samaras agreed, noting that the event showed “multiple factions within the far-right” along with newcomers converging in London.
This comes amid growing anti-immigration sentiment, as Brexit supporter Nigel Farage’s hard-right Reform UK leads in polls and protesters target hotels housing asylum seekers.
It follows anti-immigration riots last year in numerous towns and cities, which Robinson was accused of fueling with incendiary online posts.
The 42-year-old Robinson, with a string of criminal convictions and a large online following due to his anti-Muslim and anti-migrant agenda, billed Saturday as a “free speech festival.”
“Millions of patriots… in a show of patriotic unity like nothing seen before,” Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, posted on X with an image of the crowds shortly after the event ended.
“This one is for you Charlie Kirk,” Robinson added, in one of many references at the rally to the slain right-wing American activist and ally of Donald Trump.
Some attendees attached pictures of Kirk to their placards, while other signs included slogans like “stop the boats” and criticized Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
“I can’t believe it,” Emily Rose told AFP, after traveling from Glasgow in Scotland and donning a dress emblazoned with Britain’s Union Jack flag.
“I knew I needed to be here. We need to be heard.”
Others said they were motivated by immigration concerns.
Ritchie, 28, who only provided his first name, claimed Britain was experiencing “an invasion” of asylum seekers arriving annually on small boats across the Channel.
At the anti-racism rally, veteran Labour lawmaker Diane Abbott accused Robinson and his allies of spreading “nonsense” and “dangerous” lies about asylum seekers being a threat.
“We need to be in solidarity with asylum seekers, and we need to show that we are united,” she told Sky News.
Speakers at Robinson’s event included Musk, who joined via video-link, French far-right politician Eric Zemmour, and Petr Bystron of the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
“You’re in a fundamental situation here,” Musk told the crowd, claiming “the left is the party of murder and celebrating murder.”
“Whether you choose violence or not, violence is coming to you. You either fight back or you die.”
Zemmour reiterated the far-right, white nationalist so-called “Great Replacement” conspiracy theory, which claims white Europeans are being deliberately supplanted by non-white immigrants.
Ed Davey, leader of the UK’s centrist Liberal Democrats, took to social media to criticize Musk and the violent scenes that occurred.
“These far-right thugs do not speak for Britain,” he added.
