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Jeremy Corbyn has joined senior politicians at a vigil for the victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting.

The Labour leader, stood alongside Deputy Leader Tom Watson, Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell laying flowers in a Soho garden, in honour of the 49 people who died in the attack in Florida last night.

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan and Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson were also among the thousands paying their respects.

Thousands of people packed into Soho's Old Compton Street, a centre for the capital's LGBT community.

The lively street fell silent at 7pm as a sign of respect for the revellers slaughtered by a gunman in Orlando on Sunday morning.

(Image: ‏@jeremycorby)

Mr Corbyn was seen weaving through the crowd, speaking to people as the crowds gathered.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan also appeared at the vigil, as did Labour MPs Crispin Hunt and Chris Bryant.

Flags bearing messages of hope fluttered in the wind and a number of the fists were raised defiantly in the air during the two-minute silence.

After those gathered on the packed road, which is home to a number of prominent gay clubs, finished observing the two minutes of respectful quiet, 49 balloons - one for each person killed - were released into the air.

Mr Corbyn said: "Extraordinary turnout of people showing their solidarity against this awful crime and there is an amazing sense of coming together and unity here in London tonight indeed as it is all over the world.

"We have to live in a society where homophobic hate crime is a thing of the past and the deaths that happened in Orlando are a sign of something deeply awful.

"We're here in Old Compton Street because of what happened here and it's that sense of solidarity that we've got.

"Love, in the end, defeats this crime, because it's stronger."

In 1999, a nail-bomb was detonated on the street, killing two people and injuring dozens more.

Following the two minutes of silence, the group - which also featured shadow chancellor John McDonnell and Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson - laid flowers at St Anne's Church to those killed in the atrocity.