UK violence: 400 arrested, man assaulted in Belfast hate crime; police attacked with petrol bombs

Several UK cities witnessed large violent protests over the last week, leading to the arrest of over 400 people and injuriesto scores of policemen. On Monday (Aug 5), police in Plymouth were attacked as they tried to keep right-wing rioters at bay. In Belfast, protesters threw petrol bombs at officers. Unrest and chaos also erupted in the east of Birmingham.

Rioters damaged cars and homes around the week as police tried to quell the agitations.

Racial crime in Belfast

Belfast Police said they were investigating an assault on a man in his 50s as a racially motivated crime, the first in connection with the recent violence,after witnesses saw rioters stamping on his head.

Onlookers tried to shield him from the attackers but to no avail. The man was later rushed to a hospital in serious condition.

Police Service of Northern Ireland in a statement said, “In a second night of rioting and disorder, mainly in the areas of Donegall Road and Sandy Row, police officers came under sustained attack over a number of hours."

Police arrested a 15-year-old boy for instigating riots, who was still in custody.

Leeds man arrested for spreading online hatred

Meanwhile, in connection with last week’s riots, a 28-year-old man was arrested for posting incendiary content online. Jordan Parlour is the first individual to be booked for posting allegedly hateful content in relation to the riots.

The man allegedly posted content to stir up racial hatred between Aug 1 and Aug 5.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has described the riots as "far-right thuggery" on Monday, held an emergency meeting of national agencies and branches of government – to discuss the response to the disorder.

“This is not protest,” he was quoted as saying by CNN. “It is organized, violent thuggery and it has no place on our streets, or online,” he added.

Why riots erupted in UK?

Anti-immigrant riots erupted in UK the night after three young children were killed in Southport in a stabbing attack last Monday.

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The unrest worsened after false rumours spread on social media claiming the attacker was an immigrant male and a Muslim.

The UK government has vowed to "ramp up" the law to deal with the violence.

(With inputs from agencies)