Armistice is Latin for to stand (still) arms.
The agreement between Germany and the Allied powers began at 11 am on 11 November 1918 bringing the war now known as World War 1 to an end.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called the protests on Armistice Day ‘disrespectful’.
On November 11, 1918, after more than four years of horrific fighting and the loss of millions of lives, the guns on the Western Front fell silent. An armistice was signed between the Germans and the Allied powers at Compiégne, France, at 11:00 a.m., ending World War I.
Although fighting continued elsewhere, the armistice between Germany and the Allies was the first step to ending World War I. The global reaction was mixed emotions: relief, celebration, disbelief, and a profound sense of loss.
Between the two world wars, November 11 was observed as Armistice Day in the United States, Great Britain, and France. Following World War II, the significance of the day expanded to pay tribute to veterans of both wars.
In 1954, the United States officially declared November 11 as Veterans Day to honor veterans from all U.S. conflicts. In British Commonwealth countries, this day is now recognized as Remembrance Day.
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In Central London, a huge crowd, with hundreds of thousands of people, shouted “Stop bombing Gaza” and “Let’s have a ceasefire now.” It was the biggest show of support for Palestine that the country has seen so far.
On Saturday, around 300,000 people joined the march with far-right protestors clashing with police. It happened on the same day as the yearly Armistice Day, a time to remember the end of World War I and honor those who died in subsequent wars.
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The “National March for Palestine” was the latest in a series of rallies and protests in London to stand in solidarity with Palestinians since Israeli Defence Forces launched an air and ground offensive in Gaza following Hamas’s attacks on southern Israel on October 7.
The Hamas assault killed about 1200 Israeli civilians and saw more than 240 taken hostage.
Israel’s strikes, which it has said are aimed at wiping out Hamas, the Palestinian group that rules Gaza, have killed more than 11,000 people in 34 days, including more than 4,500 children.
Metropolitan Police assistant commissioner, Matt Twist, said in a statement that the pro-Palestine march was the “largest we’ve seen so far” and that it went on without incidents.
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Former British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn and member of Parliament for Islington also took part in the rally and demanded an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
