A dozen Labour MPs have criticised the Metropolitan Police for dramatically blocking a pro-Gaza march that was set to go past a synagogue in central London.

Pro-Palestine protesters were due to gather outside the BBC’s headquarters in Portland Place on Jan 18 before marching to Whitehall before Scotland Yard’s intervention.

But on Thursday the Met imposed restrictions under the Public Order Act to prevent the rally from gathering in the area amid fears that Jewish worshippers in a nearby synagogue would be harassed.

More than 30 Labour, Green and Independent MPs and peers – along with dozens of celebrities such as singer Charlotte Church and actors Harriet Walter and Mark Rylance – have criticised the Met’s decision.

The MPs, including Dawn Butler, Jeremy Corbyn, John McDonnell and Nadia Whittome, have accused the Met of “misusing public order powers to shield the BBC from democratic scrutiny”.

In a statement also signed by Sian Berry MP, the former co-leader of the Green Party and SNP MP Chris Law, they said: “It is not acceptable in a democratic society that, in the face of an ongoing genocide in Gaza, people should be barred from protesting at the BBC.”

The ban follows criticism over the Met’s alleged “two-tier” policing of the protests staged in London since the Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct 7 2023 and the subsequent Israeli military response.