Far right and anti-racists clash in the UK

LONDON (AP) — Several British police officers were injured yesterday after far-right activists clashed with anti-racism protesters following a knife attack during a dance class earlier this month that left three girls dead and several others injured.

With dozens of similar protests planned across the country, police have deployed thousands of officers on the streets, many of them in riot gear.

It has also freed up prison cells and is using surveillance and facial recognition technology.

Yesterday, Merseyside Police reported that several officers were injured in “serious disturbances” in the centre of Liverpool, some 20 miles from the site of the school attack in the coastal town of Southport in north-west England.

In a series of posts on social media site X, the police force covering Liverpool and Southport warned that there was “no place for this despicable behaviour which disrupts the lives of locals and tourists”.

Humberside police said in a statement that three officers were injured and four people arrested following the riots in Hull, a city in northeastern England.

In Stoke-on-Trent in central England, protesters threw bricks at police.

Clashes were also reported in Belfast, Manchester and Nottingham.

There were no reports of far-right marches in London.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer held a crisis meeting with his fellow ministers yesterday, where he said the police had the full support of the government to act against “extremists” who attack officers and try to “sow hatred,” according to his office.

The latest clashes come a day after protesters in Sunderland, northeast England, threw beer barrels and stones at police.

A vehicle and the building next to a police station were set on fire and 12 people were arrested.

The violence broke out a few days ago, apparently in protest against Monday’s attack in Southport. A 17-year-old boy was arrested.

False rumours spread online about the identity of the young Muslim immigrant fuelled anger among far-right supporters.

At a glance

Identified

Suspects under 18 are not usually named in the UK, but Judge Andrew Menary ordered that Axel Rudakubana, born in Wales to Rwandan parents, be identified, in part to stop the spread of misinformation.

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