UK
Police tried to prevent pro-Jewish march outside BBC while allowing pro-Palestine protest
Sunday’s March Against Antisemitism will now pass the BBC’s Broadcasting House – after the organiser complained
September 5, 2025 16:16
Sunday’s March Against Antisemitism will now pass the BBC’s Broadcasting House – after the organiser complained
September 5, 2025 16:16The Metropolitan Police tried to prevent a Jewish campaign group from protesting outside the BBC headquarters while allowing a pro-Palestine group to do so.
Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA), which is organising the March Against Antisemitism in London this Sunday, had been planning to start the rally outside the BBC's Broadcasting House in Portland Place.
The Met told CAA that the gathering point was a "fundamentally unsuitable starting location" for the march, saying parking bays would have to be suspended, Regent Street was "unsafe" and that an objection had been raised by “the business community”.
The police force also asked for a route "that avoids the BBC vicinity".
CAA told the JC: “We submitted the route to the Met two months before our march, during which time they permitted a march attended by over 100,000 people to gather at the BBC on Portland Place.
"But when it came to our march, just as we were supposed to announce the starting location with two weeks to go, senior Met officers tried to ban us from going anywhere near the BBC.
"All of a sudden, after nearly two years of Palestine marches that often started at the BBC, with frequent displays of criminal behaviour, the Met decided that our orderly march against antisemitism would be too disruptive to even pass by the BBC."
CAA said the Met had "double standards" and said it was using its power to "censor criticism of the BBC by British Jews".
This came as the Palestine Solidarity Campaign remained all set to start a protest in the very same place ten days later.
The protest on September 17 is calling for US President Donald Trump's state visit to be called off due to his support for Israel.
Part of the protest's advert reads: "It is a disgrace that Starmer’s Labour government has invited Donald Trump for a second state visit. Trump’s support for Israel has been central to the continuing genocide of the Palestinian people."
After several weeks of back-and-forth between the Met and CAA, the police force finally agreed to not only to allow the march to pass Broadcasting House, but also to stop there for 15 minutes.
CAA said: "By then we hadn’t been able to publicise the starting location for over a week and [the police] still refused to let us gather at the BBC, which is where the next Palestine march, taking place ten days after ours, is due to assemble."
The Met said: "We recognise the continuing concerns among members of London’s Jewish communities about safety at events.
"We are working with the organisers and the Community Security Trust to make sure the policing and wider safety plan is robust.
"We will have officers along the route to deal with any incidents and to ensure the safety of everyone taking part."
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