A small group of far-right thugs encircling a hotel being used by asylum seekers have been confronted by hundreds of anti-fascist counter protesters in Crawley.
The two groups have been facing off outside a Holiday Inn in the Sussex town amid an expected anti-immigration rally this afternoon.
But while hundreds of anti-racism protesters have gathered outside the hotel, there seem to be fewer than ten far-right thugs on the scene.
Police officers have subsequently been forced to provide a human barrier around the group, with one man draped in a Union Jack seen staring down a sea of counter-protesters holding placards reading ‘migrant solidarity’ and ‘no fascism’.
It comes amid a series of anti-immigrant protests and riots that swept the country in recent days with riot police in Belfast bracing for fresh clashes in the capital this evening.
Around a thousand people have gathered at Belfast City Hall for a counter protest against a small anti-immigration demonstration.
A heavy police presence and barriers are in place to keep the two gatherings apart and Donegall Square North has been closed to traffic.
The people at the anti-immigration protest were seen holding signs with slogans such as ‘Shankill Road says no to illegal immigration’ and chanting ‘send them home’.
Trade union banners and signs with anti-racism messages are being held aloft at the counter protest, with chants of ‘when migrant lives are under attack, what do we do? Stand up fight back’ and ‘Belfast is anti-fascist’.
Sinn Fein MLAs Gerry Kelly and Caral Ni Chuilin are among the counter protesters.
Police said there would be a ‘significant, visible’ operation ahead of the protest and counter demonstration in Belfast city centre on Friday evening.
Queen’s University has closed its campus and a number of businesses have closed their offices as a precaution following violent scenes at an anti-immigration protest last Saturday.
There has been further disorder across Belfast during evenings since then, and 10 police officers injured.
Keir Starmer today warned against complacency today as a ‘standing army’ of 6,000 officers remain on standby amid fears thugs could take advantage of hot weather and the return of the football season to fuel more unrest.
The Prime Minister’s comments follow consecutive nights of relative quiet across England, as more than 595 suspected rioters were arrested, 150 charged and several handed jail terms to deter further disorder.
Speaking during a visit to Met Police headquarters, Sir Keir said the start of the football season would be ‘added into the mix’ of challenges facing authorities this weekend.
‘We have to stay on high alert going into this weekend because we absolutely have to make sure that our communities are safe and secure,’ he said.
Temperatures of up to 33C (91F) could hit parts of the country this weekend in a ‘short-lived but quite intense’ hot spell – which may disappoint police chiefs hoping for rain to keep crowds off the streets.
It comes as –
Despite Sir Keir boasting of a tough approach, there are fears rioters could be released less than half way through their sentence under Labour’s scheme to tackle prison overcrowding.
The Justice Secretary announced last month that inmates would be freed after serving 40 per cent of their sentence, compared to 50 per cent previously.
Shabana Mahmood said the rule would not apply to violent offenders serving more than four years, sex offenders, or those in prison for crimes connected to domestic abuse.
However, all the rioters sentenced as of yesterday have received less than the four year limit, meaning they may be eligible for release at the 40 per cent mark.
It comes as ministers vowed to remain ‘vigilant’ of the threat of ‘violent, thuggish behaviour’ as the EFL season kicks off this weekend, with police reportedly examining links between far-right extremists and football hooligans.
Paymaster General Nick Thomas-Symonds said fans would face swift action if they engaged in any disorder, although police chiefs hope the ‘community spirit’ at matches will act as a ‘big counterbalance’ to any possible disorder.
Riot thugs have been jailed for a total of 32 years so far, with the longest sentence – three years – handed to Derek Drummond, 58, for punching a police officer in the face during a riot in Southport.
The early release scheme is due to run for at least 18 months, with the first batch of prisoners freed in September. A rioter locked up for three years this week will have already served 40 per cent of their sentence in around 14 months time.
Greg Smith, the Tory MP for Buckingham, accused Sir Keir of mixed messaging.
‘Labour’s revolving door is going to come back to bite them,’ he told the Telegraph. ‘They can’t say they’re tough on rioters and then let them out of jail after only five minutes.’
A Ministry of Justice source noted to that there would be further exemptions to the early release programme, including those found guilty of arson or terrorism – which some rioters could be charged with.
Ms Mahmood announced earlier this week that an extra 500 prison places would be introduced to house rioters, and has blamed the previous Government for leaving prisons overcrowded and ‘at the brink of collapse’.
The MOJ source added that a new houseblock would start accommodating prisoners at HMP Stocken in Rutland from next week, while new cells at HMP Cookham Wood, which has been ‘repurposed’ from a young offenders’ institution, would ‘come online’ in the coming weeks.
Some 17 people were convicted yesterday and sentenced to a combined total of 32 years. In a rare move normally reserved for the most serious murder cases, two of yesterday’s verdicts were even televised.
Sir Keir vowed there would be ‘no let up’ in tackling the disorder that exploded after the Southport stabbings last week.
Last night police said 483 people had been arrested and 149 charged – a quarter of whom are under the age of 21.
Some 104 officers have been injured and millions of pounds of damage is believed to have been caused.
Dozens more defendants face court hearings today, including two men who are set to be the first to face jail for stirring up racial hatred relating to the riots.
Ryan Wheatley, a 40-year-old grandfather, was told today that he faces after pleading guilty to assault by beating of a police officer who he ‘barrelled’ into at a protest in Southampton.
Leah Dillon, prosecuting told Southampton Magistrates’ Court, that the defendant had attended the protest wearing a mask and a hooded top with an England flag draped over his shoulders.
She said that he was part of a small group of anti-immigrant protesters who were confronted by a group of about 400 counter protesters.
Ms Dillon described how Wheatley was spotted by Sgt Perry leaving the group and attempting to run at the counter-demonstration.
She said that he stepped in to intervene when the defendant ran straight into him.
Ms Dillon said that the officer sprayed Wheatley with an incapacitant spray and he was arrested. The thug accepted in interview that he had ‘barrelled into the officer’, she added.
She said that Sgt Perry said in a statement: ‘I was very concerned about his intention should he be given the chance to interact with the group.’
He described the defendant as a ‘very large male’ and sprayed him ‘because of the sheer size of him, I felt it was the safest way to control him’.
Jordan Parlour, 28, indicated he admitted posting on Facebook between August 1 and August 5 in connection with the nationwide violent disorder.
Meanwhile, Tyler Kay, 26, is due to appear at Northampton Crown Court charged with publishing written material which was threatening, abusive or insulting, intending thereby to stir up racial hatred.
The violence exploded after the killings of three little girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Merseyside on July 29. Misinformation about the suspect, who was born in Cardiff to Christian parents, quickly spread online amid claims he was an asylum seeker who had arrived by small boat.
Fuelled by fake news, racist mobs rampaged through towns and cities across the UK for several days.
However, on Wednesday, counter-protesters dwarfed the number from the far-Right – leading to hopes of a ‘turning point’. But police said they remained vigilant last night amid fears of another 20 demonstrations in the coming days.
Last night Sir Keir chaired his third COBRA meeting of the week, where he reportedly told officials the country needs to remain on ‘high alert’.
The Prime Minister told reporters: ‘Anybody involving themselves in disorder, whatever they claim [is] their motive, will feel the full force of the law.’ Saying that the sentences yesterday ‘sent a very powerful message’, he added: ‘It is important that we don’t let up here.’
After Scotland Yard launched a series of dawn raids yesterday morning, chief Sir Mark Rowley said: ‘What I want to make really clear is those we’ve arrested aren’t protesters, patriots or decent citizens. They’re thugs and criminals.’
Last night Home Secretary Yvette Cooper praised a ‘really strong’ response to the riots from police and ‘right across the criminal justice system’. She added: ‘We said from the start that criminals, thugs, would pay the price for the kind of violence and disorder that we have seen on the streets.’
She also pledged to crack down on those inciting violence and spreading misinformation online, adding: ‘We have police officers across the country who are continuing to pursue those online cases, as well as the cases [on] the streets.’
Sentencing some of the thugs in Liverpool yesterday, Judge Andrew Menary hit out at the ‘baying mob’ who rioted in Southport within hours of a peaceful vigil for the victims last Wednesday.
Saying they had ‘disgraced and damaged’ the town’s reputation, he added: ‘It is estimated that there were about 1,000 so called ‘protesters’, though quite what they were ‘protesting’ about remains a mystery to many. This was large scale and very violent criminal activity made much worse by the fact that it was happening only a day after entirely different, utterly tragic events.’
Merseyside Police said the last of eight children seriously injured in the holiday club stabbing had been discharged from hospital yesterday.
The family of the unnamed girl condemned the violence, saying: ‘We were deeply saddened by the recent disorder and the attacks on our police force.
‘It is important to highlight that, when the horrific events unfolded, our police officers were the first on the scene. We are immensely grateful to the officers who stood by our daughter’s side, providing assistance and support.’
The grandfather of six-year-old victim Bebe King also called for calm. Michael Weston King, 62, wrote on social media: ‘I won’t comment on what has happened around the country in the aftermath, other than to say peace, love and understanding is what we need, and it is all we need. Nothing else.’
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: ‘The Government has brought in over 500 new prison places early, to ensure there is a cell waiting for everyone involved in the recent disorder and thuggery.
‘The Lord Chancellor was forced to introduce the emergency capacity measures last month, to address the prison crisis the Government inherited.’