Far-right protesters in Southport pelt police with missiles and attack mosque
Far-right protesters in Southport have pelted police with glass bottles and bricks and attacked a mosque, after a knife attack that killed three children.
Merseyside police said an officer suffered a suspected broken nose and police vehicles have been damaged and set alight in the disturbances.
“At around 7.45pm, a large group of people – believed to be supporters of the English Defence League – began to throw items towards a local mosque on St Luke’s Road in Southport,” the force said.
“Officers who are deployed are currently dealing with criminal behaviour and violence with bottles and wheelie bins being thrown at them.”
Alice Dasilva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, were all fatally stabbed in the attack on Monday. Eight other children suffered stab wounds and five are in a critical condition, alongside two adults who were also critically injured.
In the aftermath of the attack, over which a 17-year-old has been arrested, several false accusations were spread on social media with incorrect names of the alleged attacker. The only details released about the suspect by police are that he is a 17-year-old from the village of Banks in Lancashire, who was born in Cardiff.
Three girls killed in the Southport attack on Monday were named by Merseyside police: Bebe King, 6, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9.
Eight other children were injured, with five of them, and two adults who were trying to protect them, still in a critical condition.
Taylor Swift shared a message on Instagram about the attack. “The horror of yesterday’s attack in Southport is washing over me continuously and I’m just completely in shock,” the singer said. “The loss of life and innocence, and the horrendous trauma inflicted on everyone who was there, the families and first responders. These were just little kids at a dance class. I am at a complete loss for how to ever convey my sympathies to these families.”
As the night drew on, police cars closed off a wider area, directing cars and people away from the area, writes Hannah Al-Othman.
Lines of riot police stayed held their position across the streets at the epicentre of the trouble, but people slowly started to disperse.
Meanwhile, just a few hundreds yards away, others stood reading the dozens of floral tributes that had been left close to the scene; as they did so, the noise of the police helicopter sounded overhead, while smoke and the smell of burning plastic hung in the air.
Far-right protesters in Southport pelt police with missiles and attack mosque
Far-right protesters in Southport have pelted police with glass bottles and bricks and attacked a mosque, after a knife attack that killed three children.
Merseyside police said an officer suffered a suspected broken nose and police vehicles have been damaged and set alight in the disturbances.
“At around 7.45pm, a large group of people – believed to be supporters of the English Defence League – began to throw items towards a local mosque on St Luke’s Road in Southport,” the force said.
“Officers who are deployed are currently dealing with criminal behaviour and violence with bottles and wheelie bins being thrown at them.”
Alice Dasilva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, were all fatally stabbed in the attack on Monday. Eight other children suffered stab wounds and five are in a critical condition, alongside two adults who were also critically injured.
In the aftermath of the attack, over which a 17-year-old has been arrested, several false accusations were spread on social media with incorrect names of the alleged attacker. The only details released about the suspect by police are that he is a 17-year-old from the village of Banks in Lancashire, who was born in Cardiff.
The Liverpool Region Mosque Network said in a statement that it is “shocked and horrified by the heinous acts of murder and indiscriminate violence” yesterday which left three young girls dead and injured several others.
It added: “A minority of people are attempting to portray that this inhumane act is somehow related to the Muslim community. Frankly, it is not”.
As some protesters pulled up the floor outside one shop to arm themselves with rocks to throw at the police, on the other side of the road a group stormed of men stormed an other shop, attempting to break through the shutters.
As darkness fell, smaller groups dispersed and roamed the streets, setting fires in the road. Residents’ walls and fence were pulled down; the bricks used as missiles, and the wooden panels added to the fire.
When an elderly couple tried to confront protesters destroying their fence, a man told them to get back inside, while a woman screamed “you’ve got kids, haven’t you?”
As police from four neighbouring forces were called in, officers struggled to bring the situation under control. Over police radios, some called for backup, saying “we’re having petrol thrown at us.”
Merseyside police: a number of officers injured in disturbances at Southport protest
Merseyside police said a number of officers have been injured and has appealed for any information or footage of the disturbances.
The force wrote on X: “A number of officers have been injured, cars set alight and a shop broken into and looted in Southport this evening. This is completely unacceptable. We’re gathering evidence and those responsible will be brought to justice. If you have footage of those involved DM @MerPolCC.”
Merseyside police chief constable Serena Kennedy posted on X: “I am incredibly proud of my officers and staff who have worked so hard to save the lives of children, investigate the horrific incident from yesterday, working with partners to provide reassurance to our communities and now they are facing this level of violence from these thugs
“Over 1000 residents from Southport came together this evening to remember the little girls who have died, those who are still critical in hospital and all those who witnessed & are traumatised by the events from yesterday. This is where all of our focus should be.”
