A police officer was allegedly punched in the face during an anti-immigration protest in London on Sunday, leading to four arrests. The Metropolitan Police reported that a peaceful demonstration along Manchester Road and Westferry Road on the Isle of Dogs turned aggressive when a small number of masked protesters targeted members of the public and police.
A Section 60AA order was issued to prevent protesters from concealing their identities with masks, along with a Section 35 dispersal order directing them to leave. Both orders remain in effect until midnight. The Met confirmed arrests for common assault, drug possession, assault on police, public order offences, and failure to disperse.
The protest, involving 50 to 100 people, began outside the Britannia International Hotel in Canary Wharf. Counter-protesters, numbering around 100, held banners with slogans such as “stand up to racism” and chanted in support of refugees. Commander Adam Slonecki condemned the disorder, stating that masked troublemakers would be dealt with robustly.
In a separate incident in Epping, three people were arrested after hundreds gathered outside the Bell Hotel, demanding the removal of asylum seekers housed there. Essex police arrested a woman for breaching a Section 14 order, a man for inciting racial hatred after an emblem was set alight, and another for failing to disperse. The hotel has been a focal point for protests since an asylum seeker was accused of sexual assault, a charge he denies.
Assistant Chief Constable Stuart Hooper of Essex police urged peaceful protest within legal boundaries, acknowledging the strength of public feeling but reaffirming a firm stance against crime.
