In a United Kingdom shaken by violence attributed to the extreme right, the government announced on Tuesday, August 6, the mobilization of 6,000 specialized police officers and more than 500 prison places available to lock up rioters. More than a week after the knife attack that cost the lives of three young girls in the northwest of England, Monday evening was again marred by violent incidents.
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Plymouth, a port city in the county of Devon in southwest England, experienced a nightmare evening on Monday. The specialist police announced by the Prime Minister Keir Starmer were deployed to prevent any incidents as a far-right demonstration and a counter-demonstration were announced. But the police were overwhelmed.
Six people were arrested and several police officers were slightly injured, according to the police. Live images from Sky News showed a tense face-off between the far right and counter-protesters. These events demonstrate the authorities’ inability to deal with the wave of violence that has been shaking the country for more than a week. However, there is urgency, because this violence is spreading.
Violence in Belfast
In Belfast, in North Irelanda man in his thirties was seriously injured after an attack considered by investigators to be motivated by hate, according to the police, who did not specify the profile of the victim. A supermarket belonging to a foreign national, according to the Irish media RTE, and already targeted during the weekend, was the subject of an attempted arson attack.
For several hours, the police were the target of Molotov cocktails and throwing of bricks or pieces of concrete, according to the Northern Irish police, including a 4X4 which was set on fire after being doused with petrol, without however causing any injuries. A 15-year-old boy, suspected of having taken part in the incidents, was arrested and taken into custody, according to the police.
The first violence began amid rumours, which were partly denied, about the suspect’s profile, wrongly presented as a Muslim asylum seeker. The 17-year-old was in fact born in Cardiff, Wales, and, according to British media, his family is of Rwandan origin.
Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer has promised convictions ” fast ” for the rioters, and denounced the ” far-right hatred “. ” We will ensure that all those who are sentenced to prison terms for riots and disorder will have a place in prison waiting for them. “, assured the Secretary of State for Justice, Heidi Alexander, on Tuesday morning on the BBC.
The government has ensured that places that would have been available are freed up. later in the month ” she explained, referring to the figure of 567 places. On Times Radio, the Secretary of State for Justice also confirmed the mobilisation of 6,000 police officers specialising in maintaining order, specifying an announcement by Keir Starmer on Monday.
Over the weekend, hotels hosting or known to host asylum seekers were targeted, as were mosques. In Burnley, in the north-west of England, a racist investigation was launched after graves were vandalised in the Muslim square.
Read alsoUK riots: Keir Starmer wants ‘swift’ convictions
Call for responsibility
The government has insisted on the responsibility of social networks, while the boss of the X platform, Elon Muskhas come under fire for writing that a ” civil war is inevitable ” in the country. Under another publication, which implies that Britons have been arrested for a Facebook comment, the boss of X even compared the United Kingdom to the Soviet Union, denouncing a two-tier justice system on the part of the new Prime Minister.
Faced with this rhetoric, which is widespread in nationalist and anti-immigration circles, several members of the government have expressed their indignation, reports our correspondent in London, Emeline VinA spokesperson judges them ” unjustifiable “, and the Minister of Courts believes that ” At this time, everyone should call for calm “Even former members of the right-wing conservative government have condemned them.
The executive accuses social networks as a whole of participating in the spread of “fake news” at the origin of the current riots. And calls on them to do more to counter hate speech and disinformation.
The country has not seen such a surge since 2011, after the death of a young mixed-race man, Mark Duggan, by police in north London.
Read alsoUK: Authorities face worst riots in over a decade