A gathering in central London to mark St George’s Day turned violent as a brawl erupted with police officers.
A group of people pushed past Met officers and “violently forced their way through” as officers tried to contain them in an allocated area near Whitehall, the force said on Tuesday.
Men wearing St George’s flags pushed through a wall of officers wearing hi-viz vests.
The Metropolitan Police said: “Regrettably officers are already dealing with disorder.
“There is an area allocated for this event in Richmond Terrace. This group went past it and continued up Whitehall.
“When officers formed a cordon and asked the group to turn round, they reacted by violently forcing their way through. Mounted officers intervened with horses to restore the cordon.”
Some of the protesters came dressed as knights. The smell of alcohol was heavy in the air and many appeared drunk.
One man collapsed next to Downing Street and was attended by paramedics.
Scotland Yard deployed extra officers to stop disturbances erupting as masked individuals were seen gathering ahead of the protest.
At around midday, the Met said: “Later today, an event to mark St George’s Day is expected to take place on Richmond Terrace, off Whitehall.
“We believe those planning to attend include far-right groups and groups linked to football clubs travelling from elsewhere in the UK.”
A coffin is carried through the crowd near Whitehall
Rachael Burford
The force said public order officers were being deployed, with a helicopter hovering overhead.
British Transport Police and the City of London Police were also involved in the operation.
The Met added: “The officers’ primary role is to ensure the safety of participants and the public, but they will not hesitate to respond in the event of disorderly behaviour or other offences.”
The groups were believed to be gathering in the Waterloo area before joining the event in Whitehall.
Police were in the area “to respond to any incidents”.
The Met stressed: “A number of people, have been seen in the area wearing masks.
Police gather ahead of St George’s Day event in London
Rachael Burford
“A Section 60AA order, giving officers the power to require the removal of face coverings, is now in force in the boroughs of Lambeth and Westminster.”
A Section 60 order, giving officers additional search powers, was also put into force “in the same area to prevent crime and disorder”.
The force added: “We have been in discussions with the organiser of the Richmond Terrace event over recent days.
“To prevent disorder and to minimise disruption, we have imposed a number of conditions under the Public Order Act.
“Anyone participating in the event must remain on Richmond Terrace within the area marked.
“The event cannot start before 3pm and must finish by 5pm.”
Some of the flag-wearing protesters shouted “f*** Palestine” and “they don’t want us to be English”.
Ironically, St George’s mother came from fourth-century Roman Palestine, according to some accounts.
Around 3pm the Met said: “Whitehall has reopened to traffic in both directions following an earlier closure to deal with people trying to move away from the allocated event area.
“There have been no further incidents since that altercation. There is still a significant police presence.”
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