'Smash Fascism': Anti-Racism Protests Sweep UK After Riots, Hundreds Rally Outside Nigel Farage's Party Office

In Northern Ireland, a petrol bomb was thrown at a mosque, but no injuries were reported. Police are investigating it as a hate crime.

Thousands of anti-racism protesters gathered across the UK on Saturday to condemn recent riots attributed to far-right groups after the Southport knife attack that claimed the lives of three children. Demonstrations took place in London, Glasgow, Belfast, Manchester, and several other cities and towns, with fears of violent clashes with anti-immigration activists proving groundless.

The protests came after a similar situation on Wednesday night when anticipated far-right rallies across the country were instead met with counter-demonstrations organised by the Stand Up To Racism advocacy group, news agency AFP reported. Prior to this, more than a dozen locations across England and Belfast had experienced unrest after the July 29 stabbing, which was falsely linked on social media to a Muslim immigrant.

Rioters targeted mosques, hotels associated with immigration, as well as police and vehicles. However, recent nights have been largely peaceful in English towns and cities, raising hopes among authorities that the over 700 arrests and subsequent imprisonments have deterred further violence, AFP reported.

Police Probe Racially Motivated Hate Crime In Northern Ireland, Protest Outside Nigel Farage's Reform UK party In London

In Northern Ireland, where unrest has continued since last weekend, police are investigating a suspected racially motivated hate crime. A petrol bomb was thrown at a mosque in Newtownards, east of Belfast, early Saturday morning, with graffiti also sprayed on the building, according to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). It confirmed that the petrol bomb did not ignite.

"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 and any reports of hate crime are taken very seriously," PSNI Chief Inspector Keith Hutchinson said, as quoted by AFP.

There were also reports of property and vehicle damage in Belfast as unrest continued. The disharmony in Northern Ireland was sparked by events in England but it was ignited by pro-UK loyalist paramilitaries with their agenda, according to the PSNI.

Nearly 5,000 anti-racism demonstrators gathered in Belfast on Saturday without incident.

Hundreds massed outside the office of Brexit architect Nigel Farage's Reform UK party before marching to parliament in London, under the eyes of the police presence. Through their conspiracy theories and anti-immigrant rhetoric, Farage and other far-right figures have been held accountable for contributing to the rioting.

Visuals from the protest showed people carrying placards reading 'stop fascism and racism' and 'refugees welcome'.

"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, stated that he attended because he opposes the right-wing "claiming the streets in my name." While he did not hold Farage "personally responsible" for the violence, he argued that the Reform party founder had "contributed" to the volatile environment. "I think he is damaging and I think he's dangerous," Snelling added.