Nineteen Arrested After Two Nights of Belfast Unrest Following Stabbing
The Police Service of Northern Ireland arrested a Sudanese man on suspicion of attempted murder after a knife attack in Belfast left a victim in his 40s seriously injured, the New York Times reported. AP News said the suspect was a Sudanese asylum seeker and that the arrest prompted anti-immigration demonstrations in Northern Ireland and England. CBS News added that far-right groups used the incident to rally further anti-immigration protests. After the stabbing, masked demonstrators set fire to a bus, vehicles and homes in Belfast, NPR noted, prompting condemnation from officials. Police responded by deploying water cannons to disperse crowds that were throwing bricks and setting fires near the Sandyknowes roundabout, The Guardian reported.
The BBC said additional officers from Police Scotland were sent to assist as unrest continued through the night. Violent protests spread to other UK cities after a video of the attack went viral, DW. com reported. By the end of the two nights, The Guardian confirmed that nineteen people, including a teenager, had been arrested. Political leaders, including Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson and Prime Minister Keir Starmer, called for calm ahead of upcoming anti-racist demonstrations in Belfast and Glasgow.
