THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: More than 170 members of the right-wing English Defence League (EDL) have been arrested near an Armistice Day ceremony in central London amid fears they were trying to target anti-capitalists camped in the city.
Scotland Yard said the group were detained "to prevent a breach of the peace" at a pub near the Cenotaph in Whitehall.
A police source said it was believed the group were heading towards the anti-capitalist "Occupy" protest camp outside St Paul's Cathedral, set up last month after being inspired by the "Occupy Wall Street" movement.
"170+ supporters of EDL were arrested this p.m. to prevent a breach of the peace," the Met Police said on its Twitter website. "No reported disorder between opposing groups at this stage."
Last year, members of the EDL, which stages protests against violent Islamism, clashed with police during a fracas at a Remembrance Day ceremony.
The trouble erupted then when members of the radical Muslims Against Crusades (MAC) group burned two large poppies outside the Royal Albert Hall in London during a two-minute silence. » | Friday, November 11, 2011
