Thousands join pro-independence march in Glasgow

Around 80,000 demonstrators took part in the march gathered in the Kelvingrove Park, from where they set out on a march to the Glasgow Green Park in the center of Scotland's largest city.

Glasgow: Thousands of pro-independence supporters rallied on the streets of Glasgow on Saturday, battling torrential rain and strong winds, calling for a second referendum on Scotland's independence, which has once again come to the fore ahead of the looming Brexit.

Around 80,000 demonstrators took part in the march gathered in the Kelvingrove Park, from where they set out on a march to the Glasgow Green Park in the center of Scotland's largest city, media reported.

Some carried Saltires Scotland's national flag while flags of Palestine, England and the Spanish region of Catalonia were also witnessed in the crowd that had come from all over Scotland to take part in the massive demonstrations.

Banners include "We are not anti-English, we're pro-Scottish" while homage was paid to the pro-Catalan independence movement in Spain.

The pro-independence march was organised by All Under One Banner (AUOB) - a Scottish independence pressure group established in 2014.

It is the first such event out of at least eight that the group plans to hold across Scotland this year. The next one is scheduled for April and will be held in Arbroath, on the 700th anniversary of the signing of Scotland's declaration of independence, according to a media report.

Scotland already held a referendum in 2014, when the push for independence was defeated in a narrow popular vote, as 55 percent of those who took part in it chose to stay in the UK.

Yet, after the Scottish National Party gained 45 percent of the votes during the latest UK general elections in Scotland, and won 48 out of 59 Scottish seats in the House of Commons, the idea of another referendum was once again put on the table by party and First Minister leader Nicola Sturgeon.

Speaking a week after the general elections, Sturgeon had said that her government has "a clear democratic mandate to offer people a choice on that future in an independence referendum, and the UK Government has a democratic duty to recognize that.