Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn has condemned what he described as 'racist thuggery' following a second night of violent anti-immigration protests in Belfast, during which 16 individuals were arrested and 12 police officers sustained injuries.
Violence Erupts After Knife Attack
The unrest occurred after a serious knife attack on Monday. Benn stated that during the violence, people were stopped in their cars and asked about their origins, targeted because of their skin color. When asked if these were racist riots rather than protests, Benn told Sky News: 'If you are targeting people on the basis of the colour of their skin how else can you describe them? That is racist thuggery, there’s no question about it at all.' He added that 12 police officers were injured and 16 arrests were made, leaving minority ethnic communities in Northern Ireland living in 'terror and fear.'
Police Assistance and Disorder
The Police Service of Northern Ireland will receive assistance from Police Scotland, including dog teams for public order control, Benn confirmed to BBC Breakfast. Unrest was reported in Belfast, Derry, and Coleraine, though disturbances were fewer than on Tuesday, when mobs targeted people of color following the knife attack that left Stephen Ogilvie severely injured.
A Department for Infrastructure vehicle was set alight as rioters confronted police with bricks and paving stones near the Sandyknowes roundabout in Newtownabbey, north-west Belfast. Rioters attempted to set fire to a derelict property and wheelie bins, with some throwing petrol bombs at police lines. In Derry, items were set alight on Ardmore Road. Ogilvie's family expressed disgust at the disorder.
John Blair, an Alliance member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for South Antrim, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that Newtownabbey had been subjected to 'a mob on a rampage of violence and destruction.' People in Belfast had been driven from their homes, with families bundled into police cars for safety. 'I’ve spoken with these people in the last 48 hours, and they are living in sheer terror. They’re afraid of going to work in case they can’t get home. They’re worried if they get home, they won’t be safe in their homes,' Blair added.
Court Appearance and Immigration Context
On Wednesday afternoon, Hadi Alodid, a 30-year-old Sudanese man, appeared at Belfast Magistrates Court charged with attempting to murder Ogilvie, threatening to kill an NHS radiographer on the same day, and possessing a knife. Following reports that Alodid may have been 'fast-tracked' through the asylum system in 2023, Benn said the process was introduced by the previous government and is no longer in place, noting net migration is down 82% from its peak. 'We’re now processing asylum claims much, much quicker,' he told the Today programme. 'We are seeking to get a grip on this, we want a fair migration system, but we also honour the obligation we have to people fleeing persecution.'
Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland Emma Little-Pengelly said some participants in the violence were 'trying to manipulate a genuinely held concern' about immigration. She added that violence was 'absolutely wrong, and we ... have been united and calling for that to stop immediately.' Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Little-Pengelly stated: 'What some of these elements that want to create this type of disorder and violence are trying to do is to manipulate a genuinely held concern by many people, a frustration by many people.'
