"Tensions flared outside the Islamic Centre of England in Kilburn on Sunday as pro-Tehran demonstrators gathered to defend the mosque after they alleged they felt threatened by anti-Tehran activists they said were targeting the facility. The pro-Tehran demonstrators, some with their faces covered, staged a rowdy protest outside the centre, prompting a police intervention and multiple arrests, as footage shows. The picket was organised following messages posted online warning of attempts by groups opposed to the Iranian regime at the mosque. Footage shows pro-Tehran demonstrators waving Iranian and Palestinian flags outside the mosque, while opposing protesters can be seen shouting abuse as they drove past. “Today, we are here to protect the mosque from recurring people who come here claiming they are protesting, but what they have actually been doing is rioting,” claimed activist Rambo. “Yesterday, a group of individual had their children inside, studying and praying,” he added. “They jumped the fence knowing women and children were inside.” Another demonstrator, Hasan, said he saw a group arrive in '10 to 20' cars and rush toward the building. “They jumped out screaming and started running toward the centre,” he explained. As tensions escalated, police moved in to quell the unrest. Footage shows officers forming a line in front of the mosque, dispersing demonstrators and carrying out arrests as chanting continued nearby. This comes as Iranian cities have been hit by days of protests, after Tehran's police chief said on Tuesday that security forces had responded 'with power and force', noting the arrest of 'a large number' of people. The wave of protests began in late December in Tehran, before spreading to other cities, triggered by a deteriorating economic situation and the falling value of the national currency. Iranian officials have conceded that the protesters' demands are 'justified’, however they claim that 'the enemy' is exploiting the country’s economic hardship to stir unrest. This comes as US President Donald Trump warned the authorities in Tehran that they had “better not start shooting, because we'll start shooting too.” The Tehran authorities reportedly cut off internet access nationwide on Thursday, amid reports from rights groups that hundreds of protesters had been killed in the unrest."