Chaos unfolded on the streets of Britain again in the wake of the Southport killings – as hundreds of people took to the streets in Birmingham and Plymouth while speculation of further protests ran rampant on social media.
Scores of Muslims gathered near a mosque in Birmingham yesterday after rumours of a far-right gathering spread online. Some of those who had travelled to the area were filmed attacking a pub, the Clumsy Swan.
Meanwhile, police in Plymouth made six arrests as they sought to separate two groups of protesters – as a commanding officer described the policing efforts needed as ‘off the scale’ with 150 officers deployed in the city centre.
Frightened by the despairing scenes of violence and looting in other UK cities in recent days, businesses in Huddersfield chose to pull down the shutters ahead of time – while police were mobilised in the town centre.
Elsewhere, staff and students at Oxford University were warned to avoid the area around the Carfax Tower in the city centre ahead of a feared protest.
A GP surgery in Birmingham also closed as hundreds of Muslims turned out to counter a rumoured far-right gathering. Police later said they were probing assault, criminal damage and attacks on cars – but that the far-right mob never materialised.
In Southport, meanwhile, locals turned out peacefully with balloons, teddies and flowers to remember the victims of the attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class last Monday that has led to day after day of shameless scenes across the country.
It comes as some of the first rioting suspects were hauled before court after being arrested in connection with the outrageous scenes across the country in recent days – some of whom wept in the dock as charges were read out.
Hundreds of Muslims gathered in Birmingham after rumours of a far-right riot were aired on social media early on Monday.
A gathering in the Alum Rock area were the subject of discussion in a far-right Telegram group thought to have instigated the initial violence in Southport after three girls were killed last week.
One message, shared on the group at 1.30am on Monday, read: ‘Where’s the meet in alum rock Iv got 50 lads Chelmsley wood ready.’
The group is littered with racist language and has shared violent footage of Christchurch mosque shooter Brenton Tarrant’s killings.
Jess Phillips, Labour MP for the area, claimed on social media that local Muslims had been coaxed out by the rumours.
‘To be clear all day rumours have been spread that a far right group were coming and it was done entirely to get Muslim people out on the street to drive this content,’ she wrote on X, responding to the Sky News footage.
‘These people came to this location because it has been spread that racists were coming to attack them.’
Some broke away from the main gathering, aggressively driving cars around the roundabout, while videos shared on social media showed men attacking a blue Skoda. Eyewitnesses suggest the driver had made racist comments.
Videos also showed men rushing the Clumsy Swan pub on the edge of the roundabout, and getting into a fight with a man standing outside.
Channel 4 News communities editor Darshna Soni later reported that the younger men who attacked the pub had been sent home by ‘older guys in the community,’ who apologised to pub-goers.
Ms Phillips, who is also the safeguarding minister, later said the pub was ‘locked up for the night now as usual’.
She added: ‘Any acts of violence will not be tolerated… The police have attended all sites of violence tonight and all those perpetrating it will face the consequences no matter who they are.
‘Thanks to all residents who have acted with grace and kindness and have kept people informed so actions could be taken.’
Police later said no arrests had been made in Birmingham, but said they were investigating an assault, criminal damage at a pub and damage to cars, as well as a report of a man with an offensive weapon.
Chief Superintendent Richard North, commander at Birmingham local policing area said: ‘Fortunately rumours of the significant protest activity in the city didn’t materialise.
‘There were several sporadic incidents of criminality during the evening and we will work hard to arrest those responsible.
‘We want to reassure you that anyone participating in any criminality on our streets will be dealt with robustly.
‘You will continue to see an increased police presence on our streets over the coming days to offer reassurance to our communities.’
Masked groups had turned out in the area of Alum Rock and Borderley Green, some of whom swore at TV reporters delivering broadcasts.
Videos from the West Midlands city tonight show large groups of men, some wearing masks and waving Palestine flags, gathering on the centre of a roundabout next to a McDonalds.
Local councillors turned out, seemingly in support of the community turning out in the area in response to rumours of a far-right protest that spread online last night.
But on Sky News, one masked man rode up on a motorbike to the channel’s presenter Becky Johnson as she delivered a live update.
Surrounded by friends, the biker made a rude gesture at the camera and shouted: ‘Yo, free Palestine, f*** the EDL.’
Later, the correspondent revealed she and her colleagues had been told to leave the area – before a masked man with a knife tried to puncture their van’s tyre with a knife.
She wrote on Sky News: ‘as we attempted to report live from across the street we were approached by a group of men who told us to leave.
‘Older men intervened, reassuring us that we should stay. But as the situation became more hostile, we took a decision to drive away.
‘As we did, a man in a balaclava ran alongside us brandishing a knife. He ran in front of one of our vehicles and began stabbing at the tyre of our broadcast van. It wasn’t damaged, so we were able to continue to drive away.’
Around 80 per cent of shops and businesses in Huddersfield town centre have shut their doors or pulled down their shutters in the anticipation of possible looting.
Barclays and NatWest banks, as well as McDonalds have closed until tomorrow morning.
Hairdressers, shoe shops and clothing stores are also closed for ‘staff safety’.
West Yorkshire Police has deployed a dozen or so officers in St George’s Square, outside the railway station and in which stands the statue of former Prime Minister Harold Wilson.
It said in a statement reported by Yorkshire Live: ‘We are of course aware of recent disorder across the country and continue to monitor relevant intelligence relating to the possibility of further incidents.’
Reports suggest some of the businesses that closed early were run by Asian people – and Asian men travelled from other towns to be there to protect them.
One man travelled from Leeds, and told Sky News: ‘We don’t want this. This is our country just as much as it is theirs. Muslims are not bad. Our religion is not bad. We’re good people.’
It is thought an account created on X, formerly Twitter, is responsible for the Huddersfield claims.
The account was created in May this year and only began posting yesterday, suggesting there would be a ‘riot on Monday In Hudderfield (sic) at 1 pm at the Townhall’. It has not posted since 11am.
Tiny groups of locals are sitting around and a small quiet group of counter-protestors. One holding a sign reading ‘hate will lose’ is sitting on the steps of the railway station entrance.
Oxford University staff received an email warning them to ‘consider alternate routes home’ amid a planned protest ‘linked to recent unrest’.
Hundreds of anti-racism protesters gathered at the Carfax Tower but largely passed without incident, reports the Oxford Mail.
In Burnley, Muslim graves were vandalised with white paint. Videos on social media showed the headstones had been splashed.
The leader of Burnley Council, Councillor Afrasiab Anwar MBE, hit out at the ‘evil individuals’ responsible, adding that their actions were ‘solely intended to provoke racial tensions’.
Lancashire Police said it is treating the incident as a hate crime, while the council is arranging for the graves to be specially restored.
In Belfast, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) urged people to avoid the Donegall Road area of South Belfast as its officers dealt with ‘ongoing disorder’.
Reports suggest police were under attack from thugs throwing petrol bombs, with burning rubbish seen in the streets close to PSNI Land Rovers.
Earlier tonight, a worker in a Belfast shop that burned in violent scenes on Saturday night has called for better protections for those targeted by acts ‘against the Muslim community’.
Bashir, who did not want to give his surname, told a Belfast City Council meeting it is the third time the Sham supermarket has been burned, adding that he was facing a £250,000 repair bill.
He said that he and the shop owner, a man who came to Northern Ireland in 2016 fleeing the war in Syria, had to stand for hours watching the building on fire before they could get inside.
‘There is nothing, literally nothing left inside there, ashes only. That’s it. My real question is for the PSNI, where are you when we need you?’ he said.
After the meeting, Belfast City Council said a motion was passed in support of the people and businesses affected by the violence on Saturday.
The motion condemned ‘violent destruction and racist intimidation across the city, caused by far-right agitators on the streets of Belfast over the weekend’.
Meanwhile, in Stockton-on-Tees, hundreds of Muslims stood guard outside a mosque on Teesside as similar rumours of a far-right gathering spread online.
Around 400 people gathered at the community-funded Farooq E Azam Mosque and Islamic Centre in Stockton-on-Tees at around 1pm.
The largely peaceful vigil briefly erupted as a white man was arrested by police for disorderly behaviour at the end of Bowesfield Lane, where the mosque stands.
Those protecting the building surged around the police vehicles and cheered as he was driven away.
Rumours that started on Facebook were given credence when the local job centre and a doctor’s surgery closed their doors in anticipation of a repeat of the violence that erupted in neighbouring Middlesbrough 24 hours earlier.
Some members of the crowd were masked, but most stood quietly in groups with their backs to the wall of the mosque, the largest in Teesside.
Volunteer Saeed Bashir, a volunteer who works in the mosque’s education department, said: ‘We began to hear that rumours were circulating on social media and they seemed to be getting taken seriously.
‘Around 1pm people started to arrive and quite quickly there were hundreds outside standing guard.
‘It wasn’t something that was organised, people from the community just wanted to come and help.
‘It is a peaceful situation, no one is here to cause trouble but the mosque really means something here.
‘We are community funded, we’ve received no grants or funding, it is paid for and maintained by the people so no one wants to see any damage.
‘Cleveland police have sent officers down and they’re here to assist if anything happens.’
Councillor Sufi Mubeen of Stockton Council joined the crowds outside the mosque.
He said: ‘This is a peaceful effort from the entire community and we are grateful to the police for their assistance in this.
‘It wasn’t planned, people came here of their own accord because of social media rumours, which we’ve heard for a few days.
‘What made things different today is that the job centre and doctor’s surgery closed their doors.
‘People are understandably anxious that there is no senseless actions against the Muslim community, especially after what happened in Middlesbrough.
‘It is very good to see that there are many members of the white community who have come here in solidarity.
‘Stockton is a culturally mixed community and it is good to see the support we have from all sides.
‘This is not an aggressive act, people have come here to make sure nothing happens to the centre of our community.’
In Southport, meanwhile, locals have turned out peacefully with balloons, teddies and flowers to remember the victims of the attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class last Monday.
The vigil saw attendees blow bubbles as others places tributes in front of the Atkinson arts centre – their respect a defiant gesture to the violent thuggery that had seemingly been carried out in response to the killings.
The small town has found itself at the centre of the turmoil engulfing the nation following the horrifying stabbing of children at a Taylor Swift dance event on Monday which led to the death of three girls.
Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and nine-year-old Alice Dasilva Aguiar died following the attack. Axel Rudakubana, 17, has been charged with their murder and the attempted murder of 10 others.
Merseyside Police have since said one child caught up in the incident remained in hospital but all other patients had been discharged.
Since Rudakubana was arrested – initially anonymised – misinformation has spread online as to his name and identity, especially on Telegram and X, formerly Twitter, which under Elon Musk’s tenure has allowed false information to thrive.
A judge opted not to impose the standard reporting restriction for suspects under the age of 18 in a bid to stifle the misinformation circulating online, and because Rudakubana turns 18 on Wednesday.
Ministers will back social media firms if users who spread misinformation ‘have nowhere to hide’, the Technology Secretary has said.
Peter Kyle confirmed in a statement that he had met representatives from social media giants on Monday amid fears that posts to online forums are fuelling violent disorder.
His meetings followed several days of clashes between anti-immigration demonstrators, police and counter-protesters, during which buildings have been damaged by thugs.
Social media has come under scrutiny from politicians and journalists, and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Monday: ‘You can’t just have the armchair thuggery or the people being able to incite and organise violence and also not face consequences for this.’
Elon Musk, boss of X, formerly Twitter, has faced criticism from Downing Street after the billionaire posted ‘civil war is inevitable’ to the platform on Sunday.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s official spokesman said there was ‘no justification’ for the comments, adding: ‘We’re talking about a minority of thugs who don’t speak for Britain.’
Since the violence began, some alleged rioters have appeared in court.
Curtis Coulson, who is accused of waving a stick ‘in a threatening manner’ towards a woman during a riot in Sheffield, wiped away tears throughout his 20 minute-long appearance in court yesterday.
The 30-year-old, who denied one charge of affray, became even more upset when he was refused bail and remanded in custody at Sheffield Magistrates Court. He was among at least 25 riot suspects to be hauled before court.
Leanne Hodgson, 43, admitted violent disorder after pushing a wheelie bin at police in Sunderland. She was also remanded in custody, as her lawyer told magistrates that she had an ‘alcohol problem’ and suffered from poor mental health.
Meanwhile, in Liverpool, 28-year-old career criminal Adam Wharton pleaded guilty to burglary in relation to serious disorder on Saturday night at Spellow Library in Walton, which was torched and looted. He said ‘nice one lad’ as he was led down to the cells.
Sir Keir Starmer last night lashed out at what he branded ‘far-right thuggery’ by those exploiting the Southport killings to loot, hurl fireworks, scrap with police and target mosques.
The PM said: ‘People in this country have a right to be safe and yet we’ve seen Muslim communities targeted, attacks on mosques, other minority communities singled out, Nazi salutes in the street, attacks on the police, and wanton violence.
‘So no, I won’t shy away from calling it what it is: far-right thuggery.
‘To those who feel targeted because of the colour of your skin or your faith, I know how frightening this must be.
‘I want you to know that this violent mob does not represent our country, and we will bring them to justice.’
He has since promised a ‘standing army’ of specialist police officers is being assembled to crack down on rioting after an emergency Cobra meeting.
Almost 400 people have been arrested since rioting began last week and suggestions have been made to reintroduce overnight ‘Nightingale courts’ to deal with the additional strain on the justice system.
These temporary courts were introduced in 2011 in response to the riots that followed after the killing of Mark Duggan by the Metropolitan Police, when Sir Keir Starmer was head of the Crown Prosecution Service.