Protests were organized in London, Glasgow, Manchester and a number of other small and large cities. The demonstrators carried placards with texts such as “No to racism” and “Refugees welcome.” Stop outer right”.
In Belfast, Northern Ireland, where there has been unrest and riots for a week, 15,000 people took part in the commemoration in a march that ended at the city’s town hall.
The march was organized by 120 different groups after a thousand anti-racists gathered for a counter-demonstration against several hundred immigration opponents on Friday evening.
Violent protests erupted in a number of British cities after three little girls were killed in a knife attack in Southport outside Liverpool almost two weeks ago. False rumors that the perpetrator was Muslim or a refugee by boat fueled the riots.
The anti-immigration protesters attacked mosques and hotels housing asylum seekers, and also attacked the police, cars and shops.
King Charles praised everyone who during the week took part in protests and other actions to help quell the unrest. In a telephone conversation with Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday, he thanked the police and emergency services for their work in restoring order.
There were fears of clashes on Saturday between the far right and anti-racists, but in recent days the anti-immigration demonstrations have subsided. The authorities believe it is because 700 people have been arrested and several sentenced to long prison sentences.
In Belfast in Northern Ireland, however, the police are investigating an incident in which a petrol bomb was thrown at a mosque on the night of Saturday. The incident is being investigated as a racially motivated hate crime.
#Protests #racism #British #cities
2024-08-13 02:56:12
