Pro-Palestinian protesters shouted anti-Semitic insults and threats against supporters of Israel as they marched through London on Saturday.

Shouts of “Zionist pig” were heard being directed at a group of Jewish counter-demonstrators confronting the pro-Palestine march as it headed towards the US embassy in Nine Elms.

At one stage the cry of  “Khaybar, Khaybar, oh Jews, the army of Mohammed will return,” was directed at the counter-protest group from Stop the Hate, a Jewish-led direct action group.

The chant, referring to the conflict between Muslims and Jews during the early spread of Islam, is frequently interpreted as a threat against Jews and Israelis.

Protesters, who had gathered in Whitehall before to make their way past the Stop the Hate counter-protesters near Vauxhall Bridge, also chanted “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” – regarded by some as a call for the destruction of the state of Israel.