BELFAST, 10 June (Reuters) – Masked men drove families from their homes in Belfast and set several vehicles on fire during a wave of violence against migrants on Tuesday night, which followed a knife attack in which a Sudanese man appeared in court charged with attempted murder.
Hundreds of protesters, many with their faces covered, attacked police and torched vehicles in several locations across Northern Ireland after a video of the attack, in which the victim lost an eye, went viral.
Political leaders said the violence targeted ethnic minorities.
“It is clear that people were targeted last night because of their background and I will not tolerate that,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement. “Those responsible will feel the full weight of the law.”
The suspect in the attack in north Belfast, a 30-year-old Sudanese national called Hadi Alodid, appeared in court on Wednesday, where he was confirmed in custody. The victim, in his 40s, suffered serious injuries to his face and back, the court heard.
Videos of the attack circulated online throughout the day Tuesday, sparking calls for violent protests on social media.
The police had to help a family escape from a burning house. Several cars and a bus were set on fire and reduced to rubble. Local politicians and a pastor claimed that many of the targets were black.
“There can be no excuse or justification for these attacks,” said Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O’Neill. “Groups of masked men burning families in their own homes is nothing more than disgusting cowardice.”
ELON MUSK SUPPORTS PROTESTS
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The attack, which is not currently being treated as terrorism, comes at a time of heightened tensions in the UK following the murder of a student who was handcuffed by police as he agonized with stab wounds after his killer, a Sikh man, falsely claimed it was a racist attack.
It also follows repeated protests over immigration, with populist parties claiming that the UK’s asylum policy has allowed dangerous men in.
Technology billionaire Elon Musk reposted many messages denouncing the situation in the United Kingdom. In response to a post by anti-immigration activist Tommy Robinson about the north Belfast incident, in which he called for protests after “yet another invasive attack on our people,” Musk said: “Only by protesting REPEATEDLY and LOUDLY will there be any change!!”
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Smaller protests were reported in other parts of the United Kingdom on Tuesday night, including in London, where protesters briefly blocked Parliament Square, and in Scotland’s two largest cities, Glasgow and Edinburgh.
The unrest in Northern Ireland is the latest outbreak of violence in the UK in response to a crime, often attributed to an immigrant, which has led some prominent anti-Islam and anti-immigrant activists to call on people to “take to the streets”.
Belfast pastor Jack McKee told the BBC that some members of his church, who had lived there for 20 years, were “being kicked out just for being black”.
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(Reporting by Amanda Ferguson, Will Russell and Isabel Infantes in Belfast; Conor Humphries and Graham Fahy in Dublin; Sam Tabahriti in London)
