On Saturday, pro-Palestinian protestors shut down Oxford Street in London calling for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas, with at least several stores locking their doors amid the chaos.
According to the Telegraph, the Sisters Uncut organization organized the march in which participants stated, "Christmas is canceled" while carrying signs that read, "No shopping while bombs are dropping."
The approximately 500 protesters began marching in SoHo Square and moved towards Oxford Circus forcing some retailers to close their stores during the demonstration, on one of the busiest shopping days of the year. Chants of "from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free," and "stop bombing children" could be heard as they disrupted people's shopping.
Marchers were also handing out leaflets to bystanders on the street which read, "No Xmas as usual in a genocide" and called for a boycott of Israeli-made products until "Israel’s 75-year-old regime of settler colonialism and apartheid is dismantled."
As marchers passed stores such as Puma, Zara, Omega, and Furla shut their doors. An employee at one store told the outlet, "It’s the busiest shopping day before Christmas and people can’t get into the shop while this is going on. It’s frustrating.”
Police said that there were no arrests during the event and that "The protest was a pre-planned event by Sisters Uncut." Chief Superintendent Dan Ivey noted that many of his officers were forced to work "on canceled rest days (again)" as he sang their praises.
Since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas terrorists, anti-Israel protests have taken place in cities across the world. The Daily Mail noted that many protesters have specifically targeted Zara stores in their marches after they had a promotional campaign that protestors say made light of what is happening in Gaza, even though it was developed before the October attack.
"Unfortunately, some customers felt offended by these images, which have now been removed, and saw in them something far from what was intended when they were created," a statement from the company read earlier this month. "Zara regrets that misunderstanding and we reaffirm our deep respect towards everyone."
