Palestinian flag-waving crowds charged at the Ministry of Defence building in London on Friday afternoon in an alleged attempt to swarm Royal Navy officers. The sudden protest forced security to deploy MoD protective blast doors from the protesters.

Footage captured the chaotic moment as the mob attempted to swarm the naval personnel, prompting a swift response from a small number of police officers already on site. The officers rushed to form a protective line, pushing the protesters back and ensuring the military staff could safely enter the MoD without interference.

Responding, Maj (ret) Andrew Fox, Senior Associate Fellow at the Henry Jackson Society, said: “This crosses a serious line. Swarming and surrounding senior service personnel as they carry out their duties is not legitimate protest – it is intimidation of those serving the country. Our armed forces should be able to go about their work without fear of harassment or being targeted in this way.

“There is also a clear security risk. Filming and circulating footage of military personnel is not harmless – it can expose identities, routines, and potentially put both them and their families at risk.

“People have every right to protest. But grievances about government policy should be directed through democratic channels and at elected decision makers – not at service personnel who don’t set that policy.

According to GB News Home and Security editor Mark White, the situation highlighted the limited police presence at the scene, forcing officers to play catch-up as they tried to establish control.

The demonstration had started earlier on The Strand, before moving down to the embankment and across to Whitehall, where protesters blocked traffic with minimal intervention.

Mr White described how police had to rapidly reposition themselves at the front of the building to prevent the crowd from reaching the naval officers, amid what appeared to be an under-resourced policing effort for the scale of the march.

Commentators expressed outrage at the incident, particularly given the context of British armed forces personnel being actively deployed in support of operations in the Middle East.

Martin Daubney condemned the scenes as “outrageous,” highlighting the disrespect shown towards serving military members during an ongoing armed conflict.

Shortly after the initial charge, the MoD’s protective blast doors were raised as a security measure, underscoring the seriousness of the breach attempt at one of the UK’s key defence institutions.

Express.co.uk has approached the MoD for comment.

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