British Government Bans Quds Day March in London Citing London Police Security Concerns

The British government banned the Quds Day march in London, with the BBC saying the move was carried out at the request of the London police and that it was "necessary to prevent serious public disorder."

“The Quds Day march in London has been banned”

BBC

The BBC reported that Shabana Mahmood, the UK Home Secretary, said the ban was "because of the scale of the protests and also the numerous counter-protests."

BBC

The Metropolitan Police said the decision to ban the march was not easy, and the BBC quoted Ade Adelekan saying the ban covers "the Quds Day march and any related counter-protest".

In the same BBC account, Faisal Bodhi of the Islamic Human Rights Commission said the ban would be "a day of mourning for freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and the right of people to protest on issues they deeply believe in."

In north London, The Guardian described a battle within the Iranian opposition on London streets, with Tony Mohraz, also known as 021kid, rapping "Basij, one, two, shoot. IRGC, one, two, shoot. Mojahedin, one, two, shoot," in front of a memorial wall in Golders Green.

The Guardian said Mohraz is an advocate for the return to the Iranian throne of the Pahlavi dynasty, specifically Reza Pahlavi, and it described the Basij as the "iron fist" of Iran and the IRGC as the regime’s most powerful political and military institution.

DW

Laila Jazayeri, the director of the Association of Anglo-Iranian Women in the UK and a prominent supporter of the MEK in London, referred Mohraz’s video to the police and called it a "terrifying and direct incitement to murder members and supporters" of her dissident group.

The Guardian reported that a Met spokesperson said: "The Met police are assessing a report of threatening behaviour in relation to a song released online. Enquiries are ongoing."

The Times of Israel said that on Sunday, January 11, 2026, Iranians abroad and opponents of the Islamic Republic gathered in cities around the world at the call of Prince Reza Pahlavi, the Crown Prince and son of Iran’s last Shah, in support of protesters inside Iran.

“پتراس آستراویچیوس نماینده پارلمان اروپا از لیتوانی و رئیس مشترک دوستان ایران آزاد در پارلمان اروپا اعلام کرد: The regime of the mullahs in Iran has driven the people toward dictatorship, misery, and increasing uncertainty”

mojahedin.org

It reported that protests began on Sunday, December 28, 2025, with Tehran’s merchants and shopkeepers taking to the streets and their shops closing, and that the crackdown involved "tear gas, pellet rounds, and then live ammunition".

The Times of Israel also cited a human rights claim that "about 14,000 Iranian protesters had been killed by the regime" as of the evening of January 11, 2026, and that "about 32,000 had been arrested."

In London, the BBC said the Islamic Human Rights Commission describes Quds Day as "an international demonstration... in support of Palestinians and all the oppressed around the world," while the BBC also reported that the march had previously been criticized by some who say it "expresses the views of the Iranian regime."