Nigel Farage slams East London protesters as 'foreign army invading our streets'

Nigel Farage has likened masked Muslim protesters marching through Tower Hamlets to a "foreign invading army", branding the scenes "one of the most terrifying things I've ever seen in my life". The Reform UK leader's combative remarks came after hundreds from the Bangladeshi community took to the streets of East London on Saturday, following a ban on a UK Independence Party (UKIP) demonstration in the borough.

Gathering outside Whitechapel Station, the crowd waved Palestinian and Bangladeshi flags, with many donning balaclavas - on sale for £5 each to shield identities. Balaclava-clad men chanted "We will honour all our martyrs. Allahu akbar" and "Zionist scum off our streets", vowing to "defend their community" amid heightened tensions. The protest was staged in response to the UKIP ban, imposed over fears of public disorder.

Speaking at a Westminster press conference yesterday, Farage, the MP for Clacton, decried the display as raw intimidation.

He said: "This was intimidation to the point of basically urging the mass wipe out of huge numbers of Jewish people. It's one of the most terrifying things I've ever seen in my whole life. Maybe one day the deluded left will wake up to realise they've been with very strange bedfellows."

The Clacton MP continued: "It was like a foreign invading army marching through our streets. And I defy anyone in this room to tell me that's wrong."

He further insisted "proper racism" was unfolding in Tower Hamlets, while pointing out that left-winger demonstrators had also been rebuffed by the large groups of men.

The comments, delivered amid a bruising day for Reform UK, came as Mr Farage fielded fire over a racism row engulfing his party. Earlier, he dismissed accusations against MP Sarah Pochin, who sparked outrage by claiming that TV adverts were "full" of black and Asian people, driving her "mad".

Ms Pochin, elected Reform MP for Runcorn and Helsby in a by-election this year, made the remarks on TalkTV last week, agreeing with a viewer that such ads "doesn't reflect our society" and left the "average white person" unrepresented.

She later apologised, claiming her words were "phrased poorly" and aimed at the advertising industry's "DEI madness" - diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives she deemed excessive.

Mr Farage told reporters: "I am unhappy with what she has done. I understand the basic point, but the way she put it, the way she worded it, was wrong and was ugly, and if I thought that the intention behind it was racist, I would have taken a lot more action than I have to date."

He resisted calls to suspend Ms Pochin, insisting her intent was not racist, though he acknowledged the phrasing's flaws. The stance drew swift condemnation from across the political spectrum.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer labelled Ms Pochin's outburst "shocking racism" and "the sort of thing that will tear our country apart".

Speaking to broadcasters, he added: "It tells you everything about Reform. Nigel Farage has got some questions to answer, because either he doesn't consider it racist, which in my view is shocking in itself, or he does think it's racist and he's shown absolutely no leadership."

"I'm the Prime Minister of the whole of our country, our reasonable, tolerant, diverse country, and I want to serve the whole country. He can't even call out racism."

Labour chairwoman Anna Turley wrote to Mr Farage before his comments, blasting his "deafening" silence. "Saying that seeing black and Asian people in TV adverts 'drives me mad' is racist," she urged. "You have the power to withdraw the Reform UK whip from Sarah Pochin. You should do it today."

The Liberal Democrats escalated, tabling a censure motion in Parliament to rebuke Ms Pochin. Home affairs spokesman Max Wilkinson said: "If racism has no place in his party, as he continues to protest, then Nigel Farage should prove it by withdrawing the whip immediately. Failure to do this will show total contempt for the vast majority of decent British people."

Even Conservatives piled in. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp told LBC: "The way Ms Pochin had made her comments was racist, and it's right she apologised. She should absolutely not have said that. It was completely wrong."

Ms Pochin, in a follow-up statement, doubled down on her critique of "DEI mad" agencies producing "unrepresentative" ads. She said: "My comments were phrased poorly and I apologise for any offence caused, which was not my intention.

"The point I was trying to make is that the British advertising agency world have gone DEI mad... I will endeavour to ensure my language is more accurate going forward."