More than 300,000 pro-Palestinian demonstrators have marched through central London, with police arresting almost 100 far-right counter-protesters to stop them ambushing the main rally.

Skirmishes broke out between police and the far-right groups gathered to protest against the demonstration taking place on Armistice Day, the anniversary of the end of World War I, when Britain and Australia commemorate their war dead.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak condemned the violence seen at the Cenotaph war memorial and also attacked “Hamas sympathisers” who joined the bigger rally, “singing anti-Semitic chants and brandishing pro-Hamas signs and clothing on today’s protest”.

Tensions had been running high before Saturday’s march – the biggest in a series to show support for the Palestinians and call for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip – after interior minister Suella Braverman called them “hate marches” led by “mobs”.

Police said in a statement late on Saturday they had arrested 126 people so far, the majority of them right-wing protesters who formed part of a group several hundred strong that police said included football hooligans.

“The extreme violence from the right-wing protesters towards the police today was extraordinary and deeply concerning,” Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist said, adding that a knife and knuckleduster were found during searches.

The intense debate about protest and policing in the run-up to the march had raised community tensions, he said.

Hate-crime probes

While the much larger pro-Palestine rally did not see physical violence, the senior officer said small groups had broken away from the main march, and about 150 people wearing face coverings had fired fireworks which struck officers in their faces, leading to arrests.

Investigations into a small number of hate crimes and support for prescribed-organisation offences were also ongoing, he said.

Sunak called for the police to take a tough line.

“All criminality must be met with the full and swift force of the law,” he said in a statement late on Saturday.

“That is what I told the Met Police Commissioner on Wednesday – that is what they are accountable for and that is what I expect.”

Skirmishes between police and right-wing protesters continued throughout the day, with police in riot gear using batons to try to contain protesters who threw bottles.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan and Scotland’s first minister Humza Yousaf said Braverman had inflamed tensions and emboldened the far-right by accusing the police of favouring “pro-Palestinian mobs” before the event.

Police said more than 300,000 had joined the pro-Palestine rally, while organisers put the figure at 800,000.

Since Hamas’s assault in southern Israel on October 7, there has been strong support and sympathy for Israel from Western governments, including Britain’s, and many citizens.

But the Israeli military response has also prompted anger, with weekly protests in London demanding a ceasefire.

About 21,000 people took part in a pro-Palestinian rally in Brussels on Saturday, and in Paris, left-wing MPs were among some 16,000 protesters who marched with pro-Palestinian banners and flags to call for a ceasefire.

-AAP