British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced that a police unit will be set up across the country to combat the violence carried out by far-right groups following the stabbing incident in Southport.
Meeting with police chiefs following the knife attack in which three children lost their lives at a dance school in Southport on July 29, Starmer held a press conference at the Prime Minister’s Office after the meeting.
In his speech here, Starmer pointed to the violence that occurred in Southport, Hartlepool and London following the knife attack , and said: “We will not allow law and order to break down on our streets.”
Describing the groups that carry out the violence as “gangs of thugs” and saying that this group moves from one area to another, Starmer said: “They move from one community to another. We must have a police intervention that can do the same.”
Prime Minister Starmer said he supported giving police the necessary powers to stop future violence, adding that the meeting with police chiefs was not “to point fingers”. He stressed that the meeting was held to respond to both the immediate problem of far-right hatred and all the violence that has flared up.
The prime minister announced the creation of a “new national capability” among police forces to combat violent disorder, adding that the capability would include joint intelligence, facial recognition technology and preventive actions to restrict people’s movements before they attempt to join another demonstration.
“This is not protest, it is violent disorder”
Starmer emphasised that he was clear that the violent incidents that broke out at three different points following the knife attack were “not protests” and made the following statements:
“This is not justified. This is a crime, this is violent disorder. This is an attack on the rule of law and the administration of justice. We will put an end to this on behalf of the British people who expect their values and their security to be protected.”
Starmer also called out social media companies for inciting violence online following the knife attack, saying: “This is also a crime. This is happening in your areas. The law must be applied everywhere.”
Far-right extremists attack mosque
Three children were killed and 10 people, including eight children, were injured in a knife attack by a man who entered a dance school in Southport on July 29.
Following the attack, police arrested the 17-year-old suspect, born in Cardiff, with the knife believed to have been used in the incident.
While the identity of the attacker was not disclosed, news sites and social media users close to far-right groups shared news that the attacker’s name was “Ali” and that he came to the country illegally last year.
Following this, far-right English Defence League supporters gathered in the city and attacked the Southport Islamic Society Mosque. The far-right also attacked the police who tried to intervene in the incident and set a police van on fire.
As a result of the attack by far-rightists, 53 police officers and 3 police dogs were injured and 4 people were detained.
Far-right groups also held a protest in the capital London last night, and as a result of the events that followed the protest, more than 100 people were detained on charges of violence, assaulting healthcare workers, and violating the conditions of the protest.
On the other hand, after the attacker appeared before the judge, the restriction on revealing the suspect’s name was lifted and it was announced that the attacker was “Axel Muganwa Rudakubana”, born on August 7, 2006.
It was reported that the attacker, who was born in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, moved to the Southport area in 2013.
