UK protests: More than 100 arrested in clashes between far-right anti-immigrant protesters and police

Police forces across the UK made at least 100 arrests as violent clashes and riots involving far-right anti-immigration groups continued to spread over the weekend, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer offering his full support to officers to take strong action against the extremists.

Bricks being thrown, fireworks being set off, windows of a hotel housing asylum seekers being smashed, shops being attacked and set on fire and multiple scuffles between crowds and police were among the scenes of confrontation that unfolded in Liverpool, Hull, Bristol, Leeds, Blackpool, Stoke-on-Trent, Belfast, Nottingham and Manchester on Saturday.

UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper warned crowds that they would pay the price for such “criminal disorder and violence”.

Addressing the scenes of disorder we have seen, the Prime Minister said the police have our full support to take action against extremists on our streets who are attacking officers, disrupting local businesses and trying to sow hatred by intimidating communities, Downing Street said after a high-level meeting of ministers called by Starmer on Saturday.

The Prime Minister concluded by saying that the right to freedom of expression and the violent disorder we have seen are two very different things. He said there is no excuse for violence of any kind and reiterated that the government supports the police in taking all necessary measures to keep our streets safe, the statement added.

Groups that monitor anti-Muslim incidents in the UK said there had been a rise in reports of British Muslims expressing concerns for their safety, with many afraid to visit their local mosques.

People are particularly scared because of the colour of their skin and that cannot be right. It is something this government will do everything it can to address,” UK police minister Diana Johnson told the BBC.

“When I saw people looting some stores downtown, that has nothing to do with genuine protest or people having different opinions about immigration. This is about criminal behavior that needs to be addressed,” she said, warning those found guilty that there are “enough jail spaces” for such “criminal behavior.”

UK Ministry of Justice officials are said to be in discussions with the judiciary, as well as police chiefs and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to have magistrates’ courts open for longer to quickly process the expected increase in the number of people in custody for riot-related offences.

Axel Muganwa Rudakubana, 17, from Lancashire, has been charged with stabbing at the Taylor Swift-themed children’s dance workshop in Southport, northwest England, which was the first scene of the riots earlier this week.

It was sparked after false claims spread online that the suspect, who is of Rwandan descent, was an asylum seeker who had arrived in the UK on a small boat. The misinformation has since continued to spread across social media and resulted in violent demonstrations involving anti-immigrant chants by protesters in different parts of the country.

Merseyside Police in Southport have publicly identified the English Defence League (EDL) as a key factor, a group that does not formally exist but whose founder, Tommy Robinson, is associated with using the social media space to foment far-right sentiment.

Stand Up to Racism, one of the groups organizing some of the counter-protests, warned that the activities of extremist mobs should not go “unopposed.”