Southport residents come together to clean up after far-right protests turn violent following the tragic stabbing of three young girls. Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemns the unrest fueled by misinformation.
London, Bollywood Fever: Residents of Southport, a northwest England town, faced a daunting clean-up on Wednesday after far-right protesters clashed with police outside a mosque, following the tragic stabbing of three young girls.
A violent crowd of several hundred hurled bricks and bottles at riot police, set garbage bins and vehicles on fire, and caused extensive damage hours after a peaceful vigil for the victims. The ambulance service reported treating 39 police officers for injuries, with 27 taken to hospitals.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the “thuggery,” stating that the protesters had “hijacked” the community’s grief.
Norman Wallis, chief executive of the Southport Pleasureland amusement park, was among the many residents who came out to clear the debris. “It’s horrendous what those hooligans have done last night,” he said. “It was like a war scene. People from out of town just causing absolute mayhem.” He emphasized, “None of those people were the people of Southport. The people of Southport are the ones here today cleaning the mess up.”
Police identified the protesters as supporters of the far-right English Defence League, angered by false online rumors about the 17-year-old suspect arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder. Contrary to claims that the suspect was an asylum seeker, police confirmed he was born in Britain. The names of suspects under 18 are typically not made public in the U.K.
Local lawmaker Patrick Hurley criticized the violence, attributing it to “propaganda and lies” spread on social media. “This misinformation doesn’t just exist on people’s internet browsers and on people’s phones. It has real-world impact,” he stated.
The rampage follows the tragic incident on Monday when a teen armed with a knife attacked a Taylor Swift-themed summer vacation workshop, killing Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Bebe King, 6. Ten others were injured, with five children and two adults in critical condition.
Swift expressed her condolences on Instagram, stating, “These were just little kids at a dance class. I am at a complete loss for how to ever convey my sympathies to these families.”
Witnesses described the chaos, with Joel Verite, a window cleaner, recounting a woman covered in blood screaming about the attack. “It was like a scene you’d see on a disaster film,” he told Sky News.
This tragedy is a stark reminder of the 1996 Dunblane massacre, where 16 kindergartners and their teacher were shot dead, leading to a ban on almost all handguns in the U.K. While mass shootings are rare in Britain, knife crimes remain a significant concern, with knives involved in about 40% of homicides in the year to March 2023.
As Southport residents rally to support each other and clean up the aftermath, the community hopes for peace and healing in the wake of such a devastating event.
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