A peace protest caused havoc in Brighton's Churchill Square shopping mall on its busiest day of the year.

Anti-war campaigners unfurled an 18ft banner inside the centre before dropping leaflets from the top floor.

The protest on Saturday was organised by Sussex Action For Peace, which is campaigning against threatened war with Iraq.

Shoppers stopped to watch as about 60 protesters gathered on all three floors of the centre, banging drums and chanting anti-war songs.

The escalator leading to the top floor was shut and guarded by a police officer.

The banner was unveiled outside McDonald's shortly before 1pm, though the bottom half was torn away soon afterwards.

Police arrived at 1.25pm, giving the protesters five minutes to leave the centre peacefully under the Public Order Act. The demo ended shortly afterwards.

Tannoy announcements apologised to shoppers for the disruption.

Dennis Higson, acting as a legal observer, said: "The security staff were a bit panicky at first but left us alone after a while."

Demonstrator Carol Prior, from Brighton, said: "This has been a totally non-violent protest.

"Some people have been aggressive towards us but a lot of people have been interested in what we were saying.

"This country is being prepared for a war fought purely for oil."

But a member of staff at the Konami Dance Mats stall, who did not want to be named, said: "There was a boy here crying his eyes out because he was hit with a wedge of leaflets which were thrown down.

"I respect people's right to their opinions but I feel these protesters will have alienated as many people as they convinced today."

Protester Nyana Joti, from Hove, was arrested during the demo, and held at the Hollingbury police detention centre until 11pm on Saturday.

He was charged with creating a public nuisance, and bailed to return to the detention centre on January 20.