On July 29th, in a horrific incident, three young girls, aged six, seven, and nine years old respectively, were stabbed to death by a 17-year-old suspect at a Taylor Swift-inspired dance party in Southport, the UK. The word was spread that the suspect was a Muslim immigrant. However, later it was reported that he was British-born. Since then, protests and riots have surged in the UK, with more outbreaks of far-right, anti-immigration violence feared this week.
Hotels Housing Asylum Seekers Set Ablaze
The latest outbreak of violence in Britain has led to police officers getting severely injured in Plymouth due to angry crowds descending on the coastal city. The far-right agitators also set fire to the hotels that were housing asylum seekers over the weekend, leaving those inside trapped and feared. Public buildings were damaged, police vehicles were smashed, and objects were thrown at the police officers.
Anti-Immigration Marches Organized On Social Media
Initially, the protests began after an anti-immigration misinformation campaign aroused outrage following the Southport attack. The protests seemingly began as anti-immigration marches that were organized on social platforms like ‘X’, and through WhatsApp and Telegram groups. Protestors set ablaze two Holiday Inn Hotels comprising of asylum seekers. The Home Office reported that amid protests, the mosques in the United Kingdom were being provided with greater protection and new emergency security.
National Law Enforcement Body Tracking Down Suspects
The violence this weekend led to more than 370 people getting arrested. The UK’s National law enforcement body National Police Chief’s Council is continually trying to apprehend and identify those responsible and involved in the violence. Authorities have pledged to use facial recognition and other technologies in order to track the suspects down. Moreover, anti-immigration rhetoric has become increasingly widespread in the United Kingdom over time, especially in the past few years.
PM Keir Starmer’s First Crisis Since Coming To Office
UK’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer chaired his first emergency meeting, the COBRA Session following the riots, to discuss the response to the chaos. He claimed that this is not a protest, but rather an “organized, violent thuggery, and it has no place on our streets, or online”. Keir Starmer was appointed as Britain’s leader about a month ago, with the recent clashes being his first crisis. The last time Britain faced similar riots was in 2011 when a Black British man was fatally shot by the police leading protests that led to days-long riots in North London. The man in charge then too was Keir Starmer, then Britain’s Director of Public Prosecutions.