Thousands rally nationwide against far-right riots

THOUSANDS of anti-racism demonstrators gathered across the country on Saturday to protest recent riots attributed to the far-right following the Southport knife attack that resulted in the deaths of three children.

Crowds assembled in cities including London, Glasgow, Belfast, Manchester, and other English towns, as concerns about violent confrontations with anti-immigration groups did not materialise.

These rallies followed similar events on Wednesday night, where anticipated far-right protests did not take place. Instead, people joined gatherings organized by the Stand Up To Racism advocacy group.

In the days leading up to this, more than a dozen English towns and cities, along with Belfast, experienced anti-migrant unrest after the deadly July 29 stabbings, which were falsely linked on social media to a Muslim immigrant.

Rioters targeted mosques, hotels associated with immigration, police, vehicles, and other sites.

Recent nights have been mostly peaceful in English towns and cities, giving hope to authorities that the nearly 800 arrests and the number of people already jailed had discouraged further violence.

Despite the calm, media reported on Saturday that Keir Starmer had cancelled his holiday plans for next week to remain focused on the crisis.

'No to racism'

In Northern Ireland, where disorder has persisted since last weekend, police reported a suspected racially motivated hate crime overnight.

A petrol bomb was thrown at a mosque in Newtownards, east of Belfast, early Saturday, with racist graffiti sprayed on the building, according to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).

The petrol bomb failed to ignite, PSNI added.

"This is being treated as a racially motivated hate crime, and I want to send a strong message to those who carried this out, that this type of activity will not be tolerated," said PSNI chief inspector Keith Hutchinson.

There were also reports of damage to property and vehicles in Belfast overnight as unrest continued.

While the disturbances in Northern Ireland were triggered by events in England, they have also been driven by pro-UK loyalist paramilitaries with their own agenda, according to PSNI.

Around 5,000 anti-racism demonstrators rallied in Belfast on Saturday, "largely without incident," police said.

Fiona Doran, from the United Against Racism group that co-organized the gathering, said it showed "that Belfast is a welcoming city... that says no to racism, to fascism, to Islamophobia, to antisemitism, or misogyny."

'Delivering justice'

In London, thousands gathered outside the office of Brexit advocate Nigel Farage's Reform UK party before marching through the city centre, accompanied by a significant police presence.

They hold Farage and other far-right figures responsible for fueling the riots through anti-immigrant rhetoric and conspiracy theories.

"It's really important for people of colour in this country, for immigrants in this country, to see us out here as white British people saying 'no, we don't stand for this,'" said Phoebe Sewell, 32, from London.

Jeremy Snelling, 64, also from London, said he participated because "I don't like the right-wing claiming the streets in my name."

He accused Reform party founder Farage of having "contributed" to the volatile environment.

"I think he is damaging and I think he's dangerous," Snelling added.

Meanwhile, suspected rioters continued to appear in court on Saturday.

Stephen Parkinson, head of the prosecution service, stated that hundreds of alleged participants in the violence would soon face justice as a "new phase" of "more serious" cases moved through the system.

Those convicted could face jail terms of up to 10 years under the most serious offense of rioting, he warned.

"It's not about exacting revenge, it's about delivering justice," Parkinson said, as reported by the Sunday Times.

(With inputs from AFP)