March against antisemitism draws 50,000 in London

An estimated 50,000 demonstrators against antisemitism marched in London on Sunday to protest against a rise in hate crimes against Jews since the attack by Hamas militants on Israel in October and Israel's subsequent bombardment of Gaza.

Protestors carried placards bearing the messages "Shoulder to shoulder with British Jews" and "Zero tolerance for antisemites." Others showed the faces of Israeli hostages held by Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Some people sang in Hebrew while others chanted "Bring them home" in reference to the hostages.

"I’m here to support my Jewish community and I think we must stand up for ourselves, otherwise if we won't stand for ourselves who will, you know?" Avraham El Hay, a student, said.

London's Metropolitan Police received reports of 554 antisemitic offences between Oct. 1 and Nov. 1, up from 44 a year earlier, a more than 10-fold increase. Reports of Islamophobic offences almost tripled to 220 in the same period.