SUMMARY: On 11 November 2023, one million people are expected to attend the Free Palestine march in Central London, in solidarity with the Palestinian people and in protest of the ongoing genocide being committed by Israel. We are angered by attempts by the police to restrict these protests and the decision from TfL to run a significantly reduced service on the London Underground until 3pm on that day. We call on the Mayor of London to take immediate action, to ensure that people can travel to the march this weekend using any London Underground service and that the Met police stops its oppressive policing of these protest.

Dear Mayor of London,

We are deeply angered by the increasing suppression of Free Palestine protests, including politicians branding them ‘hate marches’, the Met police publishing faces of protestors on social media and now TfL running significantly reduced services ahead of the planned solidarity march on 11 November 2023. 

Hundreds of thousands of people across the country are standing up to protest Israel’s war crimes and ongoing genocide in Palestine; with widespread calls for a ceasefire, an end to the illegal occupation and a free Palestine. The British state has remained complicit in the atrocities committed by Israel, by abstaining in the United Nations vote for a ceasefire, continuing to fund and arm the Israeli state and military, and with politicians from all parties justifying and supporting Israel’s genocidal actions.

We are horrified to see our calls for Palestinian safety and liberation – a call echoed across the world – demonised and dismissed by those in power, with the UK’s political and media class branding them as ‘hate marches’. The Met police has also escalated their heavy-handed policing of these protests, including banning protests at train stations and near the Israeli Embassy, using conditions to restrict protests, and digitally policing these protests by sharing the faces of protesters on social media. We are now deeply disappointed to see that the London Underground will be running a significantly reduced service on the day of a planned march, restricting people’s ability to participate. 

We believe that these actions are a blatant attempt by the UK Government to silence dissent against Israel’s war crimes and the British state’s own complicity, in clear violation of our right to protest. 

However, we refuse to be silenced in the face of a genocide. People in this city are continuing to mobilise to say not in our name, following London’s proud history of organising mass protests for justice. In this city alone, 500,000 people marched for a free Palestine at the end of October 2023, and a million are expected to take to the streets next week.

We therefore demand you take the following urgent and immediate action to ensure our right to protest is respected:

1. Reject any attempts to tar movements in solidarity with Palestine as 'hate marches’; 
2. Ensure a full service on the London Underground for the whole day on 11 November 2023;
3. Call on the Met police to stop imposing oppressive restrictions on protests;
4. Call on the Met police to stop its digital policing of Free Palestine protests, including sharing photos of protesters on social media.