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After Southport knife attack: Britain can’t calm down

Broadcast United News Desk
After Southport knife attack: Britain can’t calm down

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As of: August 5, 2024 at 10:41 AM

Violent protests and attacks on police have taken place in several cities across the UK, with more than 150 people arrested since Saturday. The UK government has now called in a crisis team due to the unrest.

In Britain, protests by right-wing extremist groups have turned violent following a fatal stabbing of a child, with police saying more than 150 people have been arrested across the country since Saturday.

Government convenes crisis team

Due to the severity of the riots, the British government convened a meeting of the National Crisis Group Cobra. In addition to the Social Democratic and Labour Party Prime Minister Keir Starmer, several responsible cabinet members and police representatives are expected to attend the meeting.

Masked man robs Shelter accommodation one

On Sunday, police said a “large group” attacked a hotel that provides accommodation for asylum seekers in Tamworth, near Birmingham, using projectiles, breaking windows, setting fires and attacking police officers.

In Rotherham, northern England, a housing estate for asylum seekers was also hit with a massive attack: rioters smashed windows, attacked police officers and partially broke into the building. Ten officers were injured.

Prime Minister Starmer’s political crisis

For Prime Minister Starmer, the unrest represents his first political crisis just one month into his term in office – all the more so because his Labour Party was repeatedly accused during the campaign of being too lax on immigration.

In an address to the nation on Sunday, Starmer said: “I can assure you that if you took part in these riots, you will regret it, whether you did it directly or incited it on the internet and then ran away.” This “right-wing radical hooliganism” was “unjustifiable” and the perpetrators would be “brought to justice”.

Trigger knife attack on child

The outbreak of violence was sparked by a 17-year-old boy stabbing Southport, a coastal town near Liverpool, killing three children and injuring eight others and two adults. The suspect broke into a building where holiday dance classes for children were being held to music by US star Taylor Swift.

misinformation On social media

The attack shocked Britain. Speculation and misinformation about the suspect’s background quickly spread on the Internet, and according to the BBC, the suspect’s family was from Rwanda. After the incident, about a hundred right-wing extremists rioted in Southport. Among other things, they attacked a mosque.

Police accuse anti-Islamic groups

Police blamed the violence on supporters of the so-called English Defence League, an anti-Islam group founded 15 years ago with links to the hooligan scene. The rallies were promoted on right-wing extremist channels in online media, with the slogan “Enough”.

Anti-fascist counter-rallies were organized in many cities. In Leeds, for example, demonstrators marched through the city chanting “Nazi scum get off our streets”.

The worst riots in more than a decade

Police said it was the worst unrest in Britain since protests in 2011 after black father Mark Duggan was shot dead by security forces in north London.

Tiffany Lynch, of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: “We have had similar riots and clashes before but they were confined to certain parts of the country.”

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