British Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned what he called “far-right thuggery” after days of violent anti-immigration protests.
Violent protests erupted in cities across the UK after three girls were killed in a stabbing at a children’s dance class in Southport in north-west England last week. The killings were investigated by anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim groups, as misinformation spread that the alleged attacker was an immigrant and radical Islamist.
However, police stated that the suspect was born in Britain and were not treating it as a terrorist incident. Protests spread across cities across the country, including Liverpool, Bristol, and Manchester on Saturday, leading to dozens of arrests. Shops and businesses were also vandalised and looted, with several police officers injured.
On Sunday, hundreds of anti-immigration protesters gathered outside a hotel in the Rotherham area of northern England where Britain’s Home Secretary said asylum seekers were living.
I utterly condemn the far-right thuggery we’ve seen this weekend. Be in no doubt, those that have participated in this violence will face the full force of the law.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council reported that 147 people had been arrested since Saturday evening and more would be arrested in the coming days. Starmer, who took office a month ago after his Labour party won a convincing election victory over the long-ruling Conservatives, said residents were in “absolute fear” of “marauding gangs” in Rotherham.
Local police reported that 10 police officers suffered injuries in Rotherham during clashes with a crowd of 700 people, some of whom threw wooden planks and doused officers with fire extinguishers before smashing hotel windows. Lindsey Butterfield, Assistant Chief Constable at South Yorkshire Police, stated:
The mindless actions of those today have achieved nothing other than sheer destruction and leaving members of the public and the wider community in fear.
Sunday’s riots took place in smaller towns than Saturday’s, including the northwest towns of Lancaster and Bolton as well as Aldershot, southern England. Police reported arresting 14 people after a march through Middlesbrough in the north-east led to “mindless violence” and a warning to the public to avoid the town centre.
Violent protests last erupted across Britain in 2011, when thousands took to the streets after police shot dead a Black man in London. Starmer was the country’s top prosecutor at the time.
A group of faith leaders from Liverpool also issued a joint statement condemning the riots in the UK.
Since Monday, too many people have sought to use the tragedy to create division and hate. It can – and has – left communities in fear and has put people in danger.
