Keir Starmer: No Tolerance for Attacks on Muslim Communities

Starmer used the meeting as an opportunity to thank the police for their work over the past few days, express support for the injured officers, and show solidarity with communities affected by the far-right’s senseless thuggery.

During the COBRA meeting, several decisions were made, including the establishment of a permanent force of specialist public officials to ensure adequate officers are available where needed to handle such incidents.

"We Will Expedite the Prosecution Process"

Starmer stated that they would expedite the prosecution process, noting that hundreds of individuals have already been detained, and some have appeared in court this morning.

The Prime Minister made it clear that criminal law applies both online and offline and is committed to maintaining this approach.

Emphasizing that far-right street actions are "not protests, but purely violence," Starmer stated, "We will not tolerate attacks on mosques or Muslim communities."

How Did the Incidents Begin?

On July 29, a 17-year-old perpetrator in Southport, England, carried out a stabbing attack, resulting in the deaths of three children and injuries to 10 people, including eight children.

Following speculative reports about the attacker's identity on social media, far-right extremists in Southport clashed with the police and launched a stone attack on the Southport Islamic Society Mosque. During clashes with police, the extremists injured numerous officers and set a police van on fire. Due to the incidents in Southport, 53 police officers and three police dogs were injured, and five individuals were detained.

The far-right violence spread to Sunderland on August 2. A far-right crowd gathered outside the "Masjid-e Anwaar-e Madinah" Mosque, clashing with police. The crowd set the city's police station on fire and attempted to torch other public buildings. In Sunderland, where three officers were injured, ten far-right individuals were detained.

On the same day, far-right gatherings occurred in Hartlepool, Liverpool, Glasgow, and Dover, with extremists assembling in city squares and outside mosques.

On August 3, far-right groups took to the streets in approximately 20 English cities, including Bristol, Hull, Blackpool, Stoke-on-Trent, and Blackburn, as well as four different locations in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Ninety-two far-right individuals were detained for attacking migrant-owned businesses, mosques, police vehicles, and riot police officers in these cities.

On August 4, far-right groups in Weymouth, Middlesbrough, and Rotherham again targeted migrants and Muslim communities. In Rotherham, extremists gathered outside a hotel housing irregular migrants and asylum seekers, hurling stones and chairs at the building.

In these cities, far-right groups occasionally clashed with counter-protesters and those protecting religious and commercial establishments. Reports of two far-right individuals being stabbed, particularly in Hull and Stoke-on-Trent, intensified the violence, though police declared these reports false. In Blackpool and Manchester, police called for the protests to end and banned further gatherings.