(7 Aug 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
London - 7 August 2024
1. Wide of left wing protesters chanting
2. Police lined up, protesters chanting in background
3. Wide of police in front of left wing protesters, placard reading (English) "Don't let the far right divide us with their hatred and intolerance: unite"
4. Pan of protesters chanting, UPSOUND (English) "Whose streets? Our streets!"
5. Various of far-right agitator confronted by left wing protesters and police
6. Right wing protesters and police
7. Various of left wing protesters, police presence
STORYLINE:
Left wing anti-racism protesters rallied in North Finchley in London late Wednesday to counter far-right anti-immigrant agitators amid concerns of another night of violence across the country.
Police anticipated more than 100 events, Britain’s Press Association reported, citing a law enforcement source.
Internet chat groups shared a list of agencies and law firms specializing in immigration as possible targets.
But in parts of London, Bristol, Oxford and Birmingham, peaceful crowds of anti-racism protesters gathered in such large numbers that they either vastly outnumbered anti-immigrant agitators — or there was no protest to counter.
The head of London’s Metropolitan Police Service said officers were focused on protecting immigration lawyers and services.
In addition to thousands of officers already deployed, about 1,300 specialist forces were on standby in case of serious trouble in London.
“We’ll protect those people,″ Commissioner Mark Rowley said.
“It is completely unacceptable, regardless of your political views, to intimidate any sector of lawful activity, and we will not let the immigration asylum system be intimidated.”
Cities and towns have been wracked by riots and looting for the past week as angry mobs, encouraged by far-right extremists, clashed with police and counter-demonstrators.
The disturbances began after misinformation spread about the stabbing rampage that killed three girls in the seaside community of Southport, with social media users falsely identifying the suspect as an immigrant and a Muslim.
Rioters spouting anti-immigrant slogans have attacked mosques and hotels housing asylum-seekers, creating fear in Muslim and immigrant communities.
In recent days, reports have emerged of violent counterattacks in some areas.
By early evening Wednesday, though, trouble had not erupted.
A couple hundred supporters of immigrants who showed up outside a law office on a residential street in the London neighborhood of North Finchley found themselves largely alone with several dozen police officers.
The crowd chanted “refugees welcome” and “London against racism.”
Some held signs saying “Stop the far right,” “Migration is not a crime” and “Finchley against Fascism.”
Outside an immigration center in the Walthamstow area in east London, a counter-protest leader barked “fascists gone” to which a crowd of hundreds responded: “off our streets.”
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has described the previous disturbances as “far-right thuggery,” rejecting any suggestion that the riots are about the government’s immigration policies.
He has warned that anyone taking part in the violence would “face the full force of the law.”
Police have made more than 400 arrests and are considering using counter-terrorism laws to prosecute some rioters.
The government has pledged to prosecute those responsible for the disorder, including those who use social media to incite the violence.
AP Video shot by Niko Price and Mimmi Montgomery
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