UK Riots: 147 Arrested As Britain Faces Worst Rioting In 13 Years, PM Starmer Slams 'Organised Violent Thuggery'

The UK is facing its worst riots in 13 years due to misinformation about a mass stabbing. Anti-immigration demonstrators have clashed with police in various cities, posing a challenge to PM Keir Starmer.

UK Prime Minister Kier Starmer noted that residents and staff were in "absolute fear" from the "marauding gangs" in Rotherham where anti-immigration demonstrators smashed several windows at a hotel housing asylum seekers.

Source : X/@Keir_Starmer | X/@AamerAnwar

UK authorities are under increasing pressure to quell England's worst rioting in 13 years, following unrest linked to child murders and far-right agitators. The disturbances, which began due to misinformation about a mass stabbing that killed three young girls earlier this week, have spread across multiple towns and cities. Anti-immigration demonstrators clashed with police in various locations, posing a significant challenge to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who assumed office only a month ago after leading Labour to a landslide victory over the Conservatives.

In the latest incident on Sunday, masked anti-immigration demonstrators smashed several windows at a hotel housing asylum seekers in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, news agency AFP reported.

They set a hotel on fire that houses asylum seekers in Rotherham, and people can't get out.

The police are outnumbered and getting pushed back.

You can see someone on the top floor window. pic.twitter.com/9PiMwwrBRx

— Mukhtar (@I_amMukhtar) August 4, 2024

On Saturday, over 90 people were arrested following skirmishes at far-right rallies in Liverpool, Manchester, Bristol, Blackpool, Hull, and Belfast. Rioters hurled bricks, bottles, and flares at police, injuring several officers, and looted and burnt shops. Demonstrators also shouted anti-Islamic slurs as they clashed with counter-protesters, as per AFP.

UK Riots: 147 Arrested Since Saturday, PM Starmer Condemns Violence

Since Saturday night, 147 arrests have been made across the UK, and that number is expected to rise, BJ Harrington of the National Police Chiefs’ Council informed in a statement.

Harrington blamed disinformation for driving the "appalling violence", stating that "often posts are being shared and amplified by high profile accounts".

He also warned those involved in the unrest, “Intelligence teams, detectives and neighbourhood officers are working round the clock to identify and apprehend those involved and make no mistake, if you haven’t had a knock on the door yet, your time will come."

UK Prime Minister Starmer condemned the "thugs" for "hijacking" the nation's grief to "sow hatred" and announced measures to enhance intelligence sharing, deploy facial-recognition technology more widely, and issue criminal behaviour orders to restrict troublemakers' movements.

"Be in no doubt, those that have participated in this violence will face the full force of the law," he remarked.

I utterly condemn the far-right thuggery we have seen this weekend.

Be in no doubt: those who have participated in this violence will face the full force of the law. pic.twitter.com/uNeJtD8pCQ

— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) August 4, 2024

He mentioned that the violence was targeting people because of the colour of their skin or faith, and emphasised that there was no way to legitimise it on Britain's streets.

"It doesn't matter what apparent motivation there is. This is not protest, it is organised violent thuggery," he remarked.

He noted that residents and staff were in "absolute fear" from the "marauding gangs" in Rotherham. "There is no justification - none - for taking this action and all right-minded people should be condemning this sort of violence," he added.

Tiffany Lynch of the Police Federation of England and Wales remarked, "We're now seeing it [trouble] flooding across major cities and towns." According to AFP, the government assured that police have "all the resources they need" to manage the disorder, with thousands of extra officers drafted in to prevent further violence.

Policing Minister Diana Johnson told BBC News on Sunday that the rioting would "not be tolerated," while Justice Minister Shabana Mahmood insisted that "the whole justice system is ready to deliver convictions as quickly as possible."

According to BBC, 400 protestors from opposing sides were gathered on Weymouth seafront chanting at each other on Sunday.

UK Riots: Why Is Britain On The Boil?

The Rotherham disturbance marks the fifth day of skirmishes following Monday's knife attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance party in Southport, near Liverpool. False rumours on social media about the background of British-born 17-year-old suspect Axel Rudakubana, accused of killing three young girls and injuring ten others, have fueled the unrest. Police have attributed the violence to supporters of the English Defence League, an anti-Islam organisation linked to football hooliganism, as per AFP's report.

Agitators have targeted mosques in Southport and Sunderland, prompting hundreds of Islamic centres to bolster security. The rallies, advertised on far-right social media channels under the banner "Enough is enough," have seen participants waving English and British flags and chanting slogans like "Stop the boats," referring to irregular migrants travelling from France, the report stated. In Leeds, anti-fascist demonstrators countered with shouts of "Nazi scum off our streets" while far-right protesters chanted, "You're not English any more."

While not all gatherings turned violent, a peaceful protest in Aldershot on Sunday featured placards reading "Stop the invasion" and "We're not far right, we're just right." Karina, 41, from Nottingham, told AFP, "People are fed up with being told you should be ashamed if you're white and working class but I'm proud white working class."

Commentators suggest the demonstrators, emboldened by online influencers, may feel encouraged by the political rise of anti-immigration elements in British politics. Last month’s election saw the Reform UK party, led by Nigel Farage, capture 14 per cent of the vote, marking a significant share for a far-right party. Carla Denyer, co-leader of the Green Party, stated that the unrest should be "a wake-up call to all politicians who have actively promoted or given in" to anti-immigration rhetoric.