• If Britain recognises the threat posed by Al-Quds Day, it should also recognise the need to ban the IRGC itself.
London’s notorious Al Quds Day march has been banned from taking place this Sunday. The British government has discovered it is capable of cracking down on pro-Iranian regime extremists and will not allow the regime’s supporters to march through London calling for the destruction of Israel and the “liberation of Jerusalem”, or Al Quds, as the Islamic regime describes it. However, the rally will still take place in central London as a static protest instead. This is because Iran’s IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps), which is the promoter of Al Quds Day globally, is yet to be banned in the UK despite being banned by many of Britain’s allies, including the United Arab Emirates which is experiencing Iranian terror first-hand. It is time for Britain to proscribe the IRGC once and for all.
The banning of the march is welcomed. Al-Quds Day is an annual event created by Iran in 1979 following the Iranian Islamic Revolution. It was initiated by Ruhollah Khomeini as a global day of protest focused on support for Palestinians and opposition to Israel and Zionism. The day is observed on the last Friday of Ramadan with demonstrations taking place in Iran and throughout the world. In the UK, the rally traditionally takes place in London on the Sunday before the last Friday of Ramadan.
The event was created as a mobilisation against Israel and Israeli control of Jerusalem with Khomeini framing it as a religious duty for Muslims worldwide to unite in solidarity against Israel and pursue the “liberation of Jerusalem”.
The London Al-Quds march is organised by the Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC), a charity that has mourned the death of IRGC leaders, including the recent death of Ayatollah Khamenei. In past rallies, speeches and chants have included calls for the destruction of Israel and other antisemitic rhetoric. For many years, Hezbollah flags were commonplace before an outright ban of Hezbollah was introduced after a lengthy campaign, which involved CUFI supporters calling for their proscription.
The ban on the Al Quds march in London comes after the Met Police asked the Home Secretary for a ban on the Al Quds Day march itself – something it had not done since 2012. According to Jewish News, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan described how a static (stationary) protest and counter-protest would take place between 13:30 – 15:00, between Lambeth and Vauxhall bridges. Those supporting Al Quds Day would be positioned on the Albert Embankment, while those opposing it will be placed on the Millbank side of the river. Those breaching conditions set for the protest, Adelekan said, “will mean facing arrest.”
The senior police commander also said that “officers on the ground will be briefed on placards, flags and chanting that will cross the line into hate crime or support for proscribed groups”, and indicated that, as per previous statements by the Met Police Commissioner, “officers will act on chants of ‘Intifada’”.
He described how it had been the assessment of the police that even with strict conditions in place, moving protests and counter-protests would have meant that “we could not prevent the two sides coming together… putting the public, protesters and our officers at risk”. However, he emphasised that it “does not set a precedent” and that the police had “not taken this decision lightly”. He went on to say that a ban both on Al Quds related marches and counter-marches would now be in place for a month.
Ban the IRGC
While Britain allows the freedom to protest, it does not mean that support for terrorism should be tolerated. Allowing the IRGC to operate here in Britain has only served to benefit the Iranian regime and their terror proxies. It is time for the IRGC to be banned.
The IRGC supports, arms, trains and funds Hezbollah, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Houthis. The UK rightly proscribed Hezbollah, which was formed and is controlled by the IRGC. It makes no logical sense to ban one without the other as they are one and the same.
The IRGC represents a threat to UK citizens, the British Jewish community, and other UK nationals with connections to Israel. The IRGC is also a threat to British interests in the Middle East and our allies. Meanwhile, the IRGC’s Quds Force has a mandate to carry out the Iranian regime’s desire to destabilise the West and is involved in the illegal drug trade from South America into Britain, America, and Europe.
Ban the IRGC – Click here to join our campaign
