"Riots swept across the United Kingdom", as reported in the Sunday Times, United Kingdom the largest anti-migrant riot in 13 years in United Kingdom, presenting an unprecedented political challenge to the new United Kingdom prime minister, Keir Starmer, · Keir Starmer. The July 29 attack on children and the spread of disinformation by far-right groups online led to days of anti-migrant riots in many parts of the United Kingdom, with demonstrators clashing with police in the streets, Molotov cocktails on Downing Street, police overwhelmed and immigrant communities panicking. Starmer accused the "mob" of exploiting the country's grief to "sow hatred" on August 6 and said that "anyone who commits acts of violence will be fully sanctioned by law."
Homicide after dance class
The source of the unrest began on July 29 in an attack in which suspects attacked with knives, killing three children and injuring 10 others, eight of whom were also children. According to the United Kingdom The Guardian, the child had just finished a dance lesson United States singer Taylor · Taylor Swift. Swift said he was shocked on social media after learning of the incident. According to eyewitnesses at the scene, the suspect arrived at the crime scene by taxi and refused to pay the fare. Local businessman Colin · Parry said one of his employees saw the suspect and several children ran out covered in blood.
The local police arrested the suspect on the same day of the incident. The suspect is 17-year-old Axel Muganwa ·Rudakubana, · Muganwa Rudakubana, originally from Cardiff, Wales, who lives in the village of Banks near Southport. Now the suspect is in police custody. Police are investigating Rudakubana's motive for the crime. Seren·a Kennedy, the chief of the local police department, said: "At this time the investigation is not considered to be related to terrorism. ”
Anti-immigrant riots mobilized by disinformation
On July 30, after a peaceful vigil for the victims, a riot broke out in Southport, resulting in dozens of police officers being injured. Local police believe far-right supporters were involved in the riots. Police said more than 200 people flocked to Nangang on the night of July 30. Many of them arrived by train from elsewhere in United Kingdom. Riot participants attacked a mosque and burned vehicles, injuring more than 50 police officers.
According to Time magazine, the riot was caused by far-right groups spreading false information about the identity of criminal suspects on social media. Within hours of the attack, false information about the suspect's identity spread rapidly. This includes falsely claiming that the suspect is an illegal immigrant. Members of the far-right group Patriotic Alternative, the neo-Nazi group United Kingdom Movement and the United Kingdom English Defence League have incited protests on social media and urged people to take to the streets, according to research by the United Kingdom anti-hate advocacy group Hope Not Hate. The massive anti-migrant riots have now engulfed more than a dozen United Kingdom cities, including London, Hartlepool, Manchester, Middlesbrough, Hull, Liverpool, Bristol, Belfast, Nottingham and Leeds.
According to the New York Times, one of the worst attacks to date occurred on August 4. Hundreds of thugs attacked an express hotel near Birmingham that was used to house asylum seekers. The thugs attacked police officers in riot gear with bricks and chairs. The thugs also tried to kick through hotel windows and push burning bins into the hotel. A few hours later, another group attacked another hotel 70 miles away.
Starmer, the new prime minister of United Kingdom, issued a statement condemning the riots and vowed to hold those involved accountable. Gavin Stephens, chairman ·of the United Kingdom National Police Chiefs Council, told the BBC that the police would draw on the experience of the 2011 London riots and send additional police to patrol the streets of United Kingdom. "We will increase emergency response capacity in terms of intelligence, briefings and resources in local communities," he said. ”
On August 7, the police carried out the largest mobilization since the 2011 riots in response to possible riots. Law firms are closing, high street shops are being sealed, clinics are closing early, and MPs are being advised to consider working from home as 41 of England and Wales' 43 local police forces prepare for possible unrest. So far, 428 participants in the riots have been arrested and more than 140 have been prosecuted, but that number is expected to increase.
The anti-immigrant riots also sparked protesters against racism to take to the streets to organize demonstrations against the riots. According to the United Kingdom newspaper The Guardian, across England, thousands of anti-racist protesters have gathered to form a human wall to protect shelters. Protesters against racism expressed their stance holding placards with the words "Refugees Welcome" and "No to Racism, Try Healing".
Has immigration anxiety in the United Kingdom fuelled the unrest?
Although many media believe that the far-right is the main instigator of the riots, some United Kingdom officials pointed out that not all those who participated in the anti-immigration demonstrations held far-right views. United Kingdom Cabinet Secretary ·David Hanson told LBC: "Some people may be caught up in the summer madness. Some people may indeed have genuine concerns. But he warned: "If you're organizing these events right now, we'll keep an eye on you." ”
The ongoing unrest has sparked renewed attention among politicians on immigration anxiety in United Kingdom. Preventing migrant boats from arriving in United Kingdom during last month's election was a shared policy priority for both Labour and Conservatives. Don·na Jones, a Conservative politician, said the current unrest was an act of "rebellion" against "mass runaway immigration". Labour MP ·Charlotte Nichols called Jones' remarks "untenable" and drew a distinction between concerns about immigration and the legitimisation of "mob behaviour".
The London-based think tank "United Kingdom in a Europe in Change" (U.K. Anand Menon, director ·of in a Changing Europe, believes that concerns about migration are focused on small communities rather than United Kingdom broad trends in society. "If we look at the whole United Kingdom, we see that they are not very concerned about immigration," he said. In fact, the overall perception of immigration in the United Kingdom is more positive than in 2016, when 52% voted to leave the EU. The IPSO poll in February of this year showed that the number of people with positive attitudes towards immigration has decreased since July 2022, but there are still more people with negative attitudes overall. In a survey of 3,000 adults, 40 percent still believe that migration has a positive impact on the country, 35 percent have a negative view, 17 percent are neutral, and 8 percent are unsure.
Since Starmer's Labour government took office, it has made two major moves on immigration policy: one is to shelve the controversial Rwanda bill of the former Conservative government; The second is to propose to spend 84 million pounds to "solve the migration crisis at its source". Starmer announced the plan in mid-July. According to Starmer, the United Kingdom government will use the £84 million to provide humanitarian aid to countries of origin in Africa and the Middle East for health and education purposes, addressing the root causes of migrants having to leave their homes. However, the new Labour government inherited a £20 billion hole in public finances from the previous Conservative government, as well as a sluggish economy. The Labour government even used the phrase "Broke and Broken" to describe the current state of affairs in United Kingdom. This makes it difficult to predict whether the Labour government will be able to deliver on its immigration commitments.
News sources: The Guardian of United Kingdom, BBC, LBC, Time Magazine, The New York Times, Associated Press, some sources from the Internet
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