The demonstrators said they had no anti-semitic motives but were afraid of losing their jobs and even their homes.

Carrying candles and national flags, they sang a Polish peasant song which spoke of their determination not to leave their land.

The BBC's James Coomarasamy: The marchers stressed they were not anti-semitic

Some of the older marchers said they remembered being evicted by the invading Nazi forces and that they did not want to repeat the experience.

The Polish Government agreed to establish a protective zone around the former death camps following an outcry over the planned construction of a supermarket adjacent to the Auschwitz site.

Solemn character

More than 1.5 million people, mostly Jews, were murdered in the camps during the Second World War and Jewish communities around the world want the place to retain its solemn character.

Plans for a mini-mall sparked outrage

But residents of nearby cities fear the 100-metre (330-foot) wide zones would drive away investors and jobs.

And they say hundreds of families would be forced from their homes if a protective zone was established around both camps, which are about 3 kilometres (2 miles) apart.

The protest organisers included Janusz Marszalek, the developer whose plans to build a mini-mall across from the Auschwitz museum sparked the demands for the protective zones.