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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Caroline Mortimer

Britain First stage 'hapless' protest outside London mosque

Only a handful of far-right protesters have turned up to stage a “hapless” demonstration outside one of London’s largest mosques. 

Fewer than 10 members of Britain First - including deputy leader Jayda Franken - showed up to picket the East London Mosque in Whitechapel. 

During the “protest” which started at 11am on Tuesday, two men unfurled a Britain First banner while Ms Franken held up a Christian cross and shouted “We want our country back”. 

The trio were only there for around 20 minutes - leaving shortly after police arrived. 

Ms Franken is seen arguing with a police officer, asking him if it is “within [his] job description to come and mock a Christian who’s preaching in the street”.

She then calls the police “traitors” for turning against Christians in a “Christian country”. 

She claimed it was “[her] duty as a Christian to save fallen souls from the damned”. 

Men are observed filming the incident and laughing at the group - though some indistinct shouting can be heard off camera. 

The caption on a video of the incident posted on YouTube, said: “Another hapless Britain First protest outside the East London Mosque today.

“Last time they entered the mosque and trampled over the carpets, before running off when a traffic warden approached their illegally parked vehicle.”

A spokesman for the mosque, Salman Farsi, told the Evening Standard: "It was a bit worrying for us because we had a school group on a tour inside the mosque.

"There was a moment when they were provoking passers-by and someone confronted them and spat in their direction, so mosque staff stepped in to move them along."

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