More than 4,000 officers deployed for rival London protests

More than 4,000 police officers have been deployed across London on Saturday as crowds gather for two rival protests.

The Metropolitan Police will use drones, mounted officers and dogs, and has armoured vehicles on standby. Officers will also maintain a sterile zone between the Unite the Kingdom march, organised by Tommy Robinson, and a separate pro-Palestinian demonstration.

The force described the operation as one of the largest in recent years. In addition to the protests, tens of thousands of football fans are expected at Wembley Stadium for the FA Cup Final.

The Met said the risks required the highest degree of control, including the first use of live facial recognition cameras during a protest operation. The cameras will be deployed at Euston and King's Cross St Pancras stations, where many Unite the Kingdom participants are expected to arrive.

Eleven foreign far-right agitators have been barred from entering the UK to attend the event, the government said on Friday. Among them is US-based influencer Valentina Gomez, who took part in the first Unite the Kingdom march last September.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the march was a reminder of the fight against hatred and division. He said organisers were peddling hatred and that anyone seeking to incite violence would face the full force of the law.

Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, posted on X that the march would be the greatest patriotic display the world has ever seen. He said the establishment did not want people united but that the event would go ahead.

The Unite the Kingdom march will start in Kingsway, move to Whitehall and end with a rally in Parliament Square. The pro-Palestinian march, marking Nakba Day, will begin in Kensington and proceed to Waterloo Place via Piccadilly.

John Rees of Stop the War, one of the organisers of the pro-Palestinian event, said the two marches should not have been allowed on the same day. He told Radio 4's Today programme that the police should have ruled the overlap unacceptable.

The Met said it had already been in talks with Unite the Kingdom organisers when the Nakba Day application was submitted.

New Crown Prosecution Service guidance directs prosecutors to examine protest placards, banners and chants on social media for possible hate offences. Specialist officers are ready to make swift arrests, including for chants referring to intifada.

Director of Public Prosecutions Stephen Parkinson said the measures were aimed at preventing hate crime, not restricting free speech. He said organisers had a duty to ensure speakers stayed within the law.