Demonstrators clad in balaclavas waved Palestinian flags as they joined a stand-off outside a hotel said to house migrants.

Crowds have been gathering at the Chichester Park Hotel every weekend for a month since it started housing refugees.

People demonstrating against the the hotel being used for migrants shouted “terrorist” at a man wearing the Palestinian flag, while crowds chanted “no hate, no fear, refugees are welcome here”.

Activists carried banners that said "we care for our community", "enough is enough" and "Chichester welcoms (sic) refugees".

The government took over the Chichester Park Hotel, in Westhampnett Road, on Monday, September 25, after it was announced that the site would be closed to guests with bookings cancelled or moved.

A third party contractor was taking over the site on behalf of the Home Office.

The Home Office previously refused to confirm or deny the use of the hotel, adding: “The number of people arriving in the UK who require accommodation has reached record levels and has put our asylum system under incredible strain.

“We have been clear that the use of hotels to house asylum seekers is unacceptable – there are currently more than 51,000 asylum seekers in hotels costing the UK taxpayer £6 million a day.

“The Home Office is committed to making every effort to reduce hotel use and limit the burden on the taxpayer.”

In a joint statement, Chichester District Council and West Sussex County Council said: “A hotel in the Chichester area is being considered for use as contingency accommodation for people seeking asylum.

 “Decisions around the use of hotels and placements for those seeking asylum are made by the Home Office. We are not involved in the decision-making process.”

It comes as the conflict between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip enters its second week.

Israeli forces have positioned themselves along the border with Gaza and are drilled for what the Israeli government has said will be a broad campaign to dismantle the militant group.

More than 1,300 Israelis and around 2,300 Palestinians have been killed since the conflict erupted on October 7.

Militants in Gaza have fired more than 5,500 rockets since hostilities began, many reaching deep into Israel, as Israeli warplanes pound Gaza.

In a televised speech yesterday, a top Hamas official said “all of the massacres” will not break the Palestinian people.