Britain’s Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has banned the pro-Palestine Al Quds Day march in London following a request from the Metropolitan Police. Organisers condemned the decision as a “capitulation” to the Israel lobby.
Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley assessed that the scale of the planned demonstration and multiple counter-protests planned for Sunday, March 15, amid the ongoing US-Israeli war on Iran, had crossed the threshold that justified a ban.
A statement from the Met said: “The context is so uniquely complex and the risks are so severe that placing conditions on the protest will not be sufficient to prevent it from resulting in serious public disorder – running the risk of injury to members of the public, protesters, police officers and damage to property.”
In a statement, Mahmood said: “I have approved the Metropolitan Police’s request to ban the Al Quds march. I am satisfied doing so is necessary to prevent serious public disorder, due to the scale of the protest and multiple counter-protests, in the context of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.”
She added that any stationary demonstration that proceeded would face strict police conditions. “I expect to see the full force of the law applied to anyone spreading hatred and division instead of exercising their right to peaceful protest,” she said.
The Al Quds march is an annual Muslim-led peaceful protest in support of the Palestinian cause, organised locally by the Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC). The day was originally founded by the former leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomenei, who set up the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1979 following the ousting of a Western backed monarch who ruled Iran prior.
The day is marked across the Islamic world, with hundreds of thousands attending the event, usually on the last Friday of Ramadan, particularly in Lebanon, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Nigeria and Yemen.
London’s demo is Europe’s largest gathering, usually attracting thousands of participants.
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However, following the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran last week, organisers expect a far greater turnout than previous years.
A statement from the IHRC condemned the banning of the protests as a “capitulation” to the Israel lobby.
“The IHRC strongly condemns the decision by the Metropolitan Police to ban the Al Quds Day March. However, a static Al Quds Day protest will still go ahead. We hope to see you on Sunday 15th March Insha’Allah. All preparations must continue as planned. We are seeking legal advice and this decision will not go unchallenged.
“If it was not clear already, the police have brazenly abandoned their sworn principle of policing without fear or favour, and have capitulated to the pressure of the Zionist lobby. The Metropolitan Police unashamedly regurgitate Zionist talking points about IHRC without a shred of evidence. They cannot present evidence because there is none – we are an independent NGO. In essence, this is a politically charged decision; not one taken for the security of the people of London.”
The march is normally met with pro-Israel counter demonstrators and sometimes far-right protesters as well, although these two groups often stand together as one bloc.
The ban will be considered controversial to both pro-Palestine and Muslim audiences as this represents the first outright banning of a protest in London since Tommy Robinson’s Islamophobic English Defence League (EDL) march in 2012.
The Quds Day march has been described by some politicians as a “hate march”, however, the event usually passes off peacefully unlike far-right protests which on many occasion has been marred by violence and attacks on police.
The IHRC has, however, said that their protest will still go ahead as a “static protest.” Their website says it will post updated details about all new arrangements on Wednesday.
Soft on the far-right
Mahmood has come under fire in recent months from members of the Muslim community over her apparent soft-stance towards far-right activism and a harsher policy towards the pro-Palestine movement.
Mahmood failed to act to prevent numerous hate filled Tommy Robinson-led marches throughout 2025.
In September, Robinson platformed a variety of Islamophobic hate preachers including notorious American Quran desecrator Valentina Gomez, who incited for a holy war against British Muslims on a London stage to an audience of over 100,000 people.
“England belongs to the English. It’s either now or never, because if these rapists Muslims take over, they will not only rape your women, they will behead your sons, just like they did on October 7th in Israel,” she told the cheering crowd.
“So, we either fight now or we die. And we’re fighters, we are warriors of Jesus Christ. And in the words of the great Charlie Kirk, Islam is the sword that the left is using to destroy Christian nations and to destroy every Christian nation across the world. So, do not make peace with evil. Destroy it.
“And we need a new prime minister that has guts and that’s gonna stand up for the British and send all of these rapists Muslims and dirty rugs back to their Sharia nations.”
Similarly, Belgian far-right politician Filip Dewinter was allowed to enter Britain under Mahmood’s watch and took to the stage to declare: “At what time did London became Pakistan?”
He continued: “Mass immigration and multiculturalism are the Trojan horse of Islam. And Islam is the most dangerous thing for our society ever. It’s a threat for the freedom of speech. It’s a threat for the equality between man and woman. It’s a threat for the separation between this church and the state.
“It’s a threat for all of us. It’s a threat for our children. It’s a threat for what we stand for. Liberty, Europe, England, our kingdom. It has to be clear that Islam is our real enemy. We have to get rid of Islam. Islam doesn’t belong to Europe. Islam doesn’t belongs to the UK.”
Robinson’s rallies have been known to descend into violence, with supporters filmed attacking police officers and rival anti-racism counter protesters, also they have been filmed engaging in other acts of public disorder including drunk and disorderly behaviour and mass public urination.
