New rioting across UK cities as arrests multiply (2024)

The wave of violent unrest and disorder across parts of the UK continued on Monday night as police came under attack in Belfast, Darlington and Plymouth.

Six people were arrested in Plymouth while several officers suffered minor injuries in the violence, Devon and Cornwall Police said.

In South Belfast, riot officers had stones and petrol bombs thrown at them in an area close to a supermarket which was set on fire at the weekend.

Earlier, a vigil was held for the victims of a mass stabbing in Southport last week which sparked the unrest. Nearly 400 people have been arrested since the rioting began.

In Southport, hundreds of people attended the peaceful memorial a week on from the deaths of Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice Dasilva Aguiar.

Children blew bubbles and others left flowers and heart-shaped balloons in remembrance of the victims of the stabbing attack at a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club.

Merseyside Police have since said one child caught up in the incident remained in hospital but all other patients had been discharged.

Axel Muganwa Rudakubana, from Banks in Lancashire, has been charged with three counts of murder, 10 attempted murders and possession of a curved kitchen knife.

The 17-year-old, who was born to Rwandan parents in Cardiff, moved to the Southport area in 2013.

New rioting across UK cities as arrests multiply (1)New rioting across UK cities as arrests multiply (2)PA Media

Police believe the riots and unrest in towns and cities across the UK were fuelled by false rumours that the suspect was a Muslim asylum seeker.

Over the weekend, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer condemned the riots as "far-right thuggery" and on Monday he vowed to "ramp up" the law to deal with the violence.

Despite his calls for calm, the violence spread to Plymouth.

Devon and Cornwall Police said specialist officers had been deployed on Monday to the Guildhall area at 15:30 BST to deal with a far-right demonstration and a counter protest.

Later in the evening, scenes in the city turned violent as a police van was damaged and several officers were injured, the force said.

Supt Russ Dawe said a number of arrests had been made for a "range of public order offences and assaults".

Speaking at a media briefing, he said he wanted to reassure the community the force was "fully resourced at this time, with a strong police presence".

Supt Dawe added that those intent on committing crimes and public order would be "dealt with robustly".

New rioting across UK cities as arrests multiply (3)New rioting across UK cities as arrests multiply (4)Getty Images

In South Belfast, PSNI officers came under attack as riot teams were deployed to Sandy Row.

It followed a weekend of violence which saw businesses damaged after an anti-immigration protest in the city on Saturday.

Police were stood down just after midnight.

New rioting across UK cities as arrests multiply (5)New rioting across UK cities as arrests multiply (6)

In Birmingham on Monday evening, there were disturbances after hundreds of people gathered in the Bordesley Green area of the city following false reports that a far-right march had been planned there.

Palestinian flags were waved and anti-English Defence League chants were heard.

A group of youths later broke away from the gathering and attacked several vehicles and a pub.

West Midlands Police released a statement late on Monday which said officers were investigating reports of an assault and damage to a pub.

The force said no arrests had been made "at this stage but there were sporadic incidents and we are investigating reports of an assault" as well as incidents of criminal damage.

Ch Supt Richard North added: “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."

Also on Monday evening, Durham Constabulary said an 18-year-old man had been arrested following violent disorder in Darlington.

Dozens of police officers were deployed to the North Lodge Park area after two large groups of mostly males gathered just after 21:00 BST, police said adding that "small pockets of serious violence" had led to bricks being thrown at officers.

Assistant Chief Constable Richie Allen said: “What we have been dealing with tonight in Darlington has been sporadic pockets of violent disorder involving groups of people intent on causing serious harm to our communities and their property.

“We deployed a number of officers to the scene who worked throughout the night to disperse those involved."

Durham Constabulary also said it had been supported by officers from neighbouring forces Cleveland and Northumbria.

A total of 378 arrests have so far been made nationally since the rioting began on Tuesday, according to the National Police Chiefs' Council.

Police said they are working "around the clock" to identify and arrest more people.

Those who have been charged in connection with riots in parts of England appeared on Monday in various magistrates courts - including in Liverpool, South Tyneside and in Hull.

The Law Society has demanded the right support and resources for courts dealing with offenders.

New rioting across UK cities as arrests multiply (7)New rioting across UK cities as arrests multiply (8)Northumbria Police

After chairing an emergency Cobra meeting of ministers and senior police chiefs, Sir Keir announced a "standing army" of specialist officers to tackle the disorder.

A Downing Street spokesperson said later there were no plans for the military to be involved.

The government was working with social media companies to ensure misinformation and disinformation is removed, the spokesperson said.

But, the prime minister rejected calls for Parliament to be recalled from its summer recess in the face of the riots.

The Northern Ireland Assembly has been recalled to Stormont early following violent protests in Belfast last weekend.

Sir Keir said: "My focus is on making sure that we stop this disorder, that the criminal sanctions are swift and be seen to be followed."

Downing Street also criticised X owner Elon Musk for claiming "civil war is inevitable" in the UK, with officials suggesting online misinformation fuelling disorder on Britain's streets might be amplified by foreign state actors.

Sir Keir posted a video on X saying the unrest "is not protest, it is pure violence".

He added: "We will not tolerate attacks on mosques or on Muslim communities."

Mr Musk replied: "Shouldn't you be concerned about attacks on *all* communities?"

Elsewhere, Neil Basu – former head of counter-terrorism at the Metropolitan Police – told the BBC he felt some of the rioting over the past week had “crossed the line into terrorism".

Belfast

Plymouth

Southport knife attacks

Birmingham

Bordesley

New rioting across UK cities as arrests multiply (2024)

FAQs

What is causing the riots in the UK? ›

Initially, the unrest was triggered by misinformation spread about the identity of a teenager who has been arrested over the deaths of three children in a mass knife attack in the northern town of Southport on July 29. It was incorrectly suggested that he was a Muslim and an immigrant.

How many arrests in UK riots? ›

As of Sunday, the authorities had made 1,165 arrests and brought 703 charges, according to the National Police Chiefs' Council. The prime minister has avoided symbolic gestures like summoning technology executives to 10 Downing Street.

When was the last riot in the UK? ›

The last time Britain witnessed widespread rioting was in 2011, when the fatal shooting of a Black man by police triggered several days of street violence. Fast and tough judicial action was viewed as helping quell the unrest in 2011, when around 4,000 people were arrested over several weeks.

How many people died in the UK riots? ›

A series of riots took place between 6 and 11 August 2011 in cities and towns across England, which saw looting and arson, as well as mass deployment of police and the deaths of five people.

Why did the London riots start? ›

What was the problem? Two days after the police shooting of a local black man, Mark Duggan, in north London on 6 August 2011, protestors gathered outside the local police station. Mishandling of this protest led to the outbreak of violence and looting.

What is the punishment for rioting UK? ›

To class as rioting, the defendant must use actual violence either themselves or through helping others in the group to use violence. Threatening violence alone does not constitute a riot offence. The maximum sentence that can be handed down to someone found guilty of riot is 10 years in prison.

How much longer did the London riots get than the average sentence? ›

In addition, convicted rioters were sentenced to significantly longer sentences (approximately two months more on average than the 13 months received on average by similar offenders the previous year).

How many people are needed for a riot UK? ›

A riot is defined as twelve or more people present together who used or threatened unlawful violence for a common purpose; and that the conduct of them was such as to cause a present person of reasonable firmness to fear for his/her personal safety.

What were the largest riots of all time? ›

1947 – Partition riots, India and modern-day Pakistan and Bangladesh, the hardest hit region was the densely populated state of Punjab (today divided between India and Pakistan), death toll estimates between 500,000 and 2,000,000, the deadliest riots known to humankind.

When was the last time someone tried to invade England? ›

The Battle of Fishguard was a military invasion of Great Britain by Revolutionary France during the War of the First Coalition. The brief campaign, on 22–24 February 1797, is the most recent landing on British soil by a hostile foreign force, and thus is often referred to as the "last invasion of mainland Britain".

What was the worst riot in modern history? ›

#1: The Los Angeles Riots

With 63 deaths, over 2,000 injuries, 12 thousand arrests and a billion dollars in damage, the City of Angels won't soon be forgetting this bloody mark on its history.

What started the lead riots? ›

Reports suggest that the riots were triggered by a protest following the removal of four children from a family by social services. One of the children had been taken to the hospital for treatment of an injury inflicted by a sibling.

What started the UK riots in 2024? ›

According to their records, the police have arrested more than 1,000 people across Britain for rioting following the tragic murders of three young girls in Stockport on 29 July 2024. The Labour government responded rapidly with a crackdown involving multiple arrests.

Are the UK riots over? ›

By August 5, sweeping arrests and counter-demonstrations by thousands of anti-racist locals and activists had put an end to most of the unrest that began on July 30, but the fear it provoked lingers on. "It feels like we've stepped back into the 1960s," Fulani said.

What caused the Birmingham riots? ›

The riots were derived from ethnic tensions between the Caribbean and British Asian communities, with the spark for the riot being an alleged gang rape of a teenage black girl by a group of South Asian men. The rape allegation has never been substantiated.

What were the major causes of riots? ›

Historically, riots have occurred due to poverty, unemployment, poor living conditions, governmental oppression, taxation or conscription, conflicts between ethnic groups (race riot) or religions (e.g., sectarian violence, pogrom), the outcome of a sporting event (e.g., sports riot, football hooliganism) or frustration ...

Why did riots occurred in England due to food crisis? ›

Furthermore, many food riots were not solely concerned with the price of grain but were frequently related to issues of supply, of grain being exported out of a region during periods of scarcity and of farmers hoarding grain in order to create artificial shortages.

What is the Riot Act in the UK? ›

The British government, anxious to stop the protests, passed a law called the "Riot Act." It allowed public officials to break up gatherings of 12 or more people by reading aloud a proclamation, warning those who heard it that they must disperse within the hour or be guilty of a felony punishable by death.

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Rubie Ullrich

Last Updated:

Views: 5449

Rating: 4.1 / 5 (72 voted)

Reviews: 95% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Rubie Ullrich

Birthday: 1998-02-02

Address: 743 Stoltenberg Center, Genovevaville, NJ 59925-3119

Phone: +2202978377583

Job: Administration Engineer

Hobby: Surfing, Sailing, Listening to music, Web surfing, Kitesurfing, Geocaching, Backpacking

Introduction: My name is Rubie Ullrich, I am a enthusiastic, perfect, tender, vivacious, talented, famous, delightful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.