'Teddy Bear' protest in London against attacks in Aleppo

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

British actress Carey Mulligan at a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, where protestors gathered with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

British actress Carey Mulligan at a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, where protestors gathered with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

Hundreds gathered in London’s Whitehall to call on the Government to do more to end civilian deaths in the Syrian conflict.

They said the teddy bears represented the thousands of children trapped in rebel-held eastern areas of the city.

The Syrian government regime recently stepped up attacks, with civilians being pulled dead from the rubble after numerous devastating barrel bombings.

During the protest in central London, demonstrators wore “Save Aleppo” t-shirts and some carried signs urging “No bomb zone now.”

Calls for action ranged from a no-fly zone to more pressure on Russia, Syria’s key ally in the conflict.

Mulligan, star of films such as Shame and Drive – and an ambassador for the charity War Child – said one of her daughter’s toys was among the teddies.

Read: UK takes in child refugees ahead of Calais camp closure

The actress said she hoped the protesters could send a “real message” that “we really want our government to be the one to step up and lead this and try to stop the fighting in Aleppo”.

“We need to hold people accountable,” said the actress.

“There are widespread accusations of war crimes being committed and that can’t be done with impunity … They’re breaking humanitarian international laws.

“I’ve got a one-year-old daughter and I think for a moment about what it would be like for my daughter to experience any of the things that are happening in Syria.

It’s unbearable – it’s a lottery where you are born in this world. We were lucky enough to be born here and these children are born in Syria, in Aleppo, and they are experiencing a living hell.

In a statement, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said: “The UK will continue to work with its international partners to pursue a ceasefire to stop the bombing campaign.”

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has called attacks in Syria and eastern Aleppo “crimes of historic proportions”.

Hospitals and schools are among the targets that have been attacked, as the death toll in the civil war stands at more than 300,000.

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on 22 October, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

British actress Carey Mulligan at a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, where protestors gathered with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

British actress Carey Mulligan at a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, where protestors gathered with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]

In a protest organised by War Child, Avaaz and Amnesty International in London, protestors gather with teddy bears and placards calling on the British government to take action to protect the children of the Syrian city of Aleppo outside on October 22, 2016 [Kate Green/Anadolu]