Police arrest 43 during Unite the Kingdom rally and pro-Palestine march in London

Tommy Robinson’s Unite the Kingdom rally failed to get the huge numbers it wanted to march through London, with police confident less than half joined his protest on Saturday compared with an event last year. The far-right rally happened on the same day as a pro-Palestinian march, and the Metropolitan police said that 43 arrests had been made during the two events. Police said 20 arrested had attended the UTK march, including nine for alleged hate crimes, while 12 people detained had been on the pro-Palestinian march, including two arrested for alleged hate crimes. A further 11 arrests were not said to be linked to either group. In September, a similar march spearheaded by Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, drew an estimated 150,000 people to the capital. The Met estimated Saturday’s event drew 60,000 people, still a sizeable crowd for a British protest, but well short of the million or more attenders organisers were hoping for. Robinson speaking on stage during the rally. Photograph: Hannah McKay/Reuters Among the arrests of those attending the Unite the Kingdom rally were several instances of alleged hateful insults directed at officers. One officer from a minority-ethnic background is alleged to have been told to “fuck off back home”, two were allegedly subjected to a term of homophobic abuse, and another officer was allegedly told “take your religion and fuck off”. …