Thousands Take Part in Rival London Protest Marches
17th May 2026
Separate groups of protestors converged on the capital. One route was taken in the build-up to a “Unite the Kingdom” rally, organised around the activist Tommy Robinson (born Stephen Yaxley-Lennon).
The separate annual pro-Palestinian Nakba Day march commemorating the displacement of Palestinians in 1948 also went ahead, in line with the pattern of weekly ‘pro-Palestine’ marches in the capital that began in the immediate aftermath of the Hamas-led October 7 pogrom in Israel.
Attendees at the Robinson event travelled from across the country, with some wearing “Make England Great Again” hats, or carrying wooden crosses and chanting “Christ is King.” British authorities had earlier banned at least 11 foreign right-wing speakers from entering the country ahead of the demonstrations.