“Stop the far right”: thousands of people gathered on Wednesday night in British cities to demonstrate their opposition to the far-right riots that have rocked the country for a week in response to the murder of three girls.
Since Wednesday morning, security forces have expressed fears of dozens of new racist and Islamophobic demonstrations and possible outbreaks of violence, particularly against mosques and hotels that host migrants.
But in the evening, after a week of clashes, “anti-hate protesters stood up to the thugs”, as the tabloid The Daily Mail writes on the front page of today’s paper.
In north-east London, where there were fears of a far-right demonstration in Walthamstow, there were thousands, an AFP reporter found.
Members of Stand Up To Racism and residents, some of whom carried a Palestinian flag, held placards reading “Stop the far right” and “Refugees welcome”.
“I think it’s important to be there for your friends and your neighbors,” said Sarah Tresillian, 58.
“I want to thank our communities for coming together in the capital tonight and showing a sense of community,” Andy Valentine, head of policing for the Metropolitan Police, said in a statement.
In Birmingham (central England), hundreds of people gathered in front of a migrant aid centre. In AFP video, slogans such as “Let’s say it loud and clear, refugees are welcome here” can be heard from the gathering. Some held placards reading ‘Fascism not welcome’.
In Brighton, 2,000 people took part in a “peaceful” demonstration, according to police.
Other rallies took place in Bristol (west), Liverpool (north) near an asylum seeker aid association building, Sheffield (north), Newcastle (north) and Oxford (centre) and broke up peacefully.
But there have been sporadic tensions, such as in Aldershot (south), where the PA news agency reports that police had to intervene between anti-racist protesters and a group of people chanting “Stop the boats” – a reference to migrants arriving in the UK by inflatables from the English Channel.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper last night, Wednesday, hailed the work of police officers who are present in the field “to protect and support local communities”.
These rallies were held under a heavy police presence, while the authorities had warned the rioters that they would not be allowed to repeat the violence of the past few days.
More than 400 people have been arrested since the clashes began last week and more than 120 people have been charged, according to the prosecutor’s office. The first convictions have also been announced.
“Here’s how we’re taking action fast,” wrote Prime Minister Keir Starmer on X, who has repeatedly signaled a crackdown on rioters.
Counter-terrorism police chief Matt Jewkes warned that authorities were not ruling out invoking counter-terrorism legislation for some violent incidents.
For a week now, the United Kingdom has been confronted with scenes of racist violence that were initially caused by the circulation of rumours, which were denied, about the profile of the perpetrator of the murder of three girls, aged between 6 and 9, in Southport (northwest England).
The suspect presented himself as an asylum seeker and a Muslim, when in fact he was born in Cardiff, Wales and his family is originally from Rwanda, according to British media.
Since then, mosques and hotels have been targeted during riots, while dozens of police officers have been injured.
The government had announced that this week 6,000 additional police officers would be mobilized to restore order and that 567 prisons would be made available for the incarceration of rioters.
A Savanta poll published yesterday, Wednesday, shows that 67% of Britons are worried about the rise of the far right. According to another poll, released by YouGov, immigration is the main challenge facing the country for 51% of respondents, a figure not seen in nearly 10 years.
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