Mapping far-right riots in the UK (2024)

Rioters have attacked people, shops, cars and public spaces as far-right violence sweeps across the United Kingdom.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has decried “far-right thuggery”.

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But members of Muslim community and activists have accused politicians, including the governing Labour party, of downplaying the levels of racism and Islamophobia taking place. They also say politicians and some media outlets are to blame for railing against migration for years.

What started the riots?

Disinformation on social media is an immediate factor.

The July 29 killing of three young girls in a knife attack on a Taylor Swift-themed dance and yoga workshop in the northern English town of Southport shocked the UK. A 17-year-old suspect, Axel Rudakubana, was arrested in connection with the worst violence in the UK in a decade.

But false information on social media about the suspect’s origins spread like wildfire with some falsely naming him as a Muslim and migrant. The name “Ali al-Shakati”, with no official source, was shared.

Mapping far-right riots in the UK (1)

Even after the suspect was named as Rudakubana, a British-born teenager who is neither a Muslim nor a migrant, agitators continued to decry immigration and Muslims.

In the days following the attack in Southport, protests led by far-right groups escalated into clashes with police in multiple towns, as a wave of unrest saw rioters targeting mosques and businesses owned by the minority community and hotels housing asylum seekers.

Who is behind the riots?

Many of the rioters back the far right, police have said.

Well-known far-right figures such as Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, and the influencer Andrew Tate have been posting at pace, stirring up hatred online.

Tate said in a video on X that an “undocumented migrant” who had “arrived on a boat” had attacked the girls in Southport.

Robinson told his 800,000 followers on X that there was “more evidence to suggest Islam is a mental health issue rather than a religion of peace”.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is said to have fuelled tensions by questioning whether police were being truthful about Southport’s attack not being “terror-related”.

Where have riots spread in the UK?

Riots have swept across most of the UK, including in Wales and Northern Ireland, however, the majority of unrest has been in English cities and towns.

Some of the locations include: Aldershot, Belfast, Birmingham, Blackburn, Blackpool, Bolton, Bristol, Cardiff, Darlington, Hartlepool, High Wycombe, Hull, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Middlesbrough, Nottingham, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Preston, Rotherham, Southport, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Tamworth and Weymouth.

How many people have been arrested?

More than 400 people have been arrested since the violence began, 100 of whom have already been charged.

According to London Metropolitan Police, 111 people were arrested in central London on Wednesday following a demonstration in Whitehall.

In other places such as Middlesbrough, in northern England, about 43 people were arrested on Monday, said Cleveland police. At least 29 people had been arrested in Hull so far, according to Humberside police.

Mapping far-right riots in the UK (2)

Why are Muslims, immigrants, and other minority groups being targeted?

Muslims have borne the brunt of the attacks, but Black Britons and immigrants have also been targeted.

The feeling among many is that everyone in the country who is not white could be targeted.

In Stoke-on-Trent, a mosque was vandalised earlier in the week as part of the protest that turned violent on Saturday.

The causes of the riots are complex. There are explanations here and here. The Southport tragedy appears to have provided the far right with a “reason” to riot, but there are longer-term factors at play, such as the anti-migrant narratives adopted by several leading politicians.

Some British media outlets are asking if the far-right rioters have legitimate concerns about immigration.

A recent YouGov poll suggests 8 percent of Britons sympathise with the rioters.

What’s next?

Police and officials are telling the public that perpetrators of violence and abuse will be punished. Meanwhile, ethnic minority and migrant communities are becoming more fearful.

In a recent news conference, South Yorkshire Police’s Assistant Chief Constable Lindsey Butterfield stated, “If you were there, we will find you and you will be held accountable for yesterday’s violence.”

Veteran Labour politician Diane Abbott said on X, “Nationwide anti-immigrant riots on a scale never seen before. Threatening life, property and our police force. We need to recall Parliament.”

On Wednesday, police say 100 more far-right gatherings could take place. They have deployed thousands of officers to avert possibleattacks on immigration solicitors and refugee centres.

Mapping far-right riots in the UK (2024)

FAQs

What started the UK riots? ›

The unrest began in the aftermath of a fatal stabbing attack in Southport that killed three young girls, which agitators misleadingly blamed on a Muslim migrant. As disinformation about the suspect travelled at pace online, angry crowds took to the streets to abuse migrants and Muslims at random.

Are the UK riots over? ›

By August 5, sweeping arrests and counter-demonstrations by thousands of anti-racist locals and activists had put an end to most of the unrest that began on July 30, but the fear it provoked lingers on. "It feels like we've stepped back into the 1960s," Fulani said.

Are riots illegal in UK? ›

1 Riot.

(4)No person of reasonable firmness need actually be, or be likely to be, present at the scene. (5)Riot may be committed in private as well as in public places. (6)A person guilty of riot is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for a term not exceeding ten years or a fine or both.

What were the major causes of riots? ›

Historically, riots have occurred due to poverty, unemployment, poor living conditions, governmental oppression, taxation or conscription, conflicts between ethnic groups (race riot) or religions (e.g., sectarian violence, pogrom), the outcome of a sporting event (e.g., sports riot, football hooliganism) or frustration ...

What caused the Jubilee riots? ›

"Walking for God and Raising Hell: the Jubilee Riots"

The Orange Order, famously promoting a British Protestant version of Canada, had denounced the series of pilgrimages proposed by Archbishop John Lynch. Toronto's mayor had also unsuccessfully tried to persuade the Roman Catholic Archbishop to cancel the event.

Is the right to peaceful protest in the UK? ›

Article 11 of the European Convention of Human Rights provides freedom of assembly. This means that every individual, regardless of cause, has the right to protest, march or demonstrate in a public space.

How many people are needed for a riot UK? ›

c. 5), sometimes called the Riot Act 1714 or the Riot Act 1715, was an act of the Parliament of Great Britain which authorised local authorities to declare any group of 12 or more people to be unlawfully assembled and order them to disperse or face punitive action.

What is the sentence for rioting in the UK? ›

Most people charged so far have been accused of violent disorder. Riot is a more serious charge which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

What speech is illegal in the UK? ›

Current law allows for restrictions on threatening or abusive words or behaviour intending or likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress or cause a breach of the peace, sending another any article which is indecent or grossly offensive with an intent to cause distress or anxiety, incitement, incitement to racial ...

Is it illegal to shout in public in the UK? ›

Section 5 makes it an offence to use “threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour, or disorderly behaviour” or to display “any writing, sign or other visible representation which is threatening, abusive or insulting” within the hearing or sight of a person “likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress ...

Is it illegal to insult a police officer in the UK? ›

The legality hinges on the context and manner of the swearing. If your language is seen as a form of disorderly behaviour, it could fall under the Public Order Act 1986. This Act makes it an offence to use threatening or abusive words or behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm, or distress.

What started the Birmingham riots? ›

The riots were derived from ethnic tensions between the Caribbean and British Asian communities, with the spark for the riot being an alleged gang rape of a teenage black girl by a group of South Asian men. The rape allegation has never been substantiated.

Why did riots occurred in England due to food crisis? ›

Furthermore, many food riots were not solely concerned with the price of grain but were frequently related to issues of supply, of grain being exported out of a region during periods of scarcity and of farmers hoarding grain in order to create artificial shortages.

What is the Riot Act in England? ›

The Act allowed local officials to read a proclamation ordering illegally assembled groups of more than twelve people to disperse. Refusal to disperse was a felony offence which carried the death penalty. It is from this we get the phrase 'reading the Riot Act'.

What caused the 1834 riots? ›

In October, 1834 riots broke out in New York City spurred by a confluence of events: the fiery oratory of abolitionist Protestant ministers (many of whom were also nativist and anti-Catholics); the growing social assertiveness of former enslaved people and of free-born African-Americans in the city; the growth of ...

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