London: The British police on Tuesday clashed with several angry far-right protesters, who hurled stones and water bottles and set fire to a police van, outside a mosque in Southport, northwest England near where three girls were fatally stabbed a day ago. More than 20 police officers were injured in the clash, which reportedly began after false online rumours spread on the identity of the attacker.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the “thuggery” and said the crowd had hijacked what had earlier been a peaceful vigil attended by hundreds in the center of Southport to mourn the dead and 10 surviving stabbing victims. "Those who have hijacked the vigil for the victims with violence and thuggery have insulted the community as it grieves. They will feel the full force of the law," he said on X.
'False' online rumours led to violent clashes
The protesters, who torched a police van and several cars, were believed to be supporters of the English Defence League, a far-right group, and the mayhem was inspired by rumours about the identity of the teenage suspect arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder. Police previously said a suspect’s name circulating on social media was incorrect and the boy was born in Britain, contrary to online claims he was an asylum seeker.
“There has been much speculation and hypothesis around the status of a 17-year-old male who is currently in police custody and some individuals are using this to bring violence and disorder to our streets,” Merseyside Police Assistant Chief Constable Alex Goss said. The Liverpool Region Mosque Network said the "heinous" stabbing was unconnected to Islam.
Several officers injured in Southport clash
Meanwhile, officers in riot gear outside the mosque were pelted with bricks torn from garden walls in the residential neighborhood by members of the crowd, some of whom wore masks, amid chants of “No surrender!” and “English till I die!” Firecrackers exploded, sirens wailed and a helicopter hovering overhead added to the chaos.
At least 22 officers were injured, including eight who suffered more serious injuries that included fractures, lacerations and a concussion. Two police dogs were wounded by bricks and a third suffered burns. This came after three girls were stabbed to death while eight children and two adults were hospitalised after the attack.
Shocking attack in UK
Two girls aged 6 and 7 previously died following Monday's attack in Southport outside a Taylor Swift-themed kids’ yoga and dance class, while a third girl, aged 9, succumbed to her injuries on Tuesday. Swift said she was “completely in shock” and still taking in “the horror” of the event. “These were just little kids at a dance class," she wrote on Instagram. “I am at a complete loss for how to ever convey my sympathies to these families.”
The 17-year-old suspect was arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder shortly after the attacks just before noon. Police said he was born in Cardiff, Wales, and had lived for years in a village about 5 km from Southport. He has not yet been charged. The rampage is the latest shocking attack in a country where a recent rise in knife crime has stoked anxieties and led to calls for the government to do more to clamp down on bladed weapons.
Police said detectives are not treating Monday’s attack as terror-related and they are not looking for any other suspects. “We believe the adults who were injured were bravely trying to protect the children who were being attacked,” Merseyside Police Chief Constable Serena Kennedy said. It is the latest shocking attack in a country where a recent rise in knife crime has stoked anxieties and led to calls for the government to do more to clamp down on bladed weapons.
PM Starmer under fire
Starmer called the attack “horrendous and deeply shocking.” King Charles III sent his “condolences, prayers and deepest sympathies” to those affected by the “utterly horrific incident.” Prince William and his wife Catherine said that “as parents, we cannot begin to imagine what the families, friends and loved ones of those killed and injured in Southport today are going through.”
The British PM was jeered by some people as he visited the crime scene and lay a wreath of pink and white flowers with a handwritten note that said: “Our hearts are broken, there are no words for such profound loss. The nation’s thoughts are with you.”
“How many more children?” one person yelled as Starmer was getting in his car. “Our kids are dead and you’re leaving already?” Starmer said he is determined to get a grip on high levels of knife crime but said it was not a day for politics.
Witnesses described hearing screams and seeing children covered in blood emerging from the Hart Space, a community centre that hosts everything from pregnancy workshops and meditation sessions to women’s boot camps. Notably, Britain’s worst attack on children occurred in 1996, when 43-year-old Thomas Hamilton shot 16 kindergarteners and their teacher dead in a school gymnasium in Dunblane, Scotland.
(with inputs from agencies)
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