Rioters have burnt vehicles, thrown bricks and bottles at police and pelted a mosque in the town of Southport following the deadly stabbing spree that killed three children and injured eight more, including two adults at a Taylor Swift-themed dance and yoga class on Monday.
The scene became so violent that 39 police officers were injured, with 27 taken to the local hospital, the North West Ambulance Service confirmed in a statement on Facebook.
Merseyside Police had earlier confirmed eight sustained serious injuries including fractures, lacerations, a suspected broken nose and concussions. Other officers “have suffered varying degrees of injury including head injuries, serious facial injuries and one was knocked unconscious,” a statement read.
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Three police dogs were also injured. Two sustained leg injuries from bricks that were hurled at them, while the third dog “suffered burns to her back leg.” A local convenience store was also damaged and trash bins were set on fire.
Offenders are said to have “destroyed garden walls” to steal bricks to attack officers.
The attack happened after a 17-year-old allegedly broke into the Hart Space Dance studio in Southport, U.K., during a Swift-themed yoga and dance class. The suspect then stabbed three children aged 6, 7, and 9 to death, and injured eight other children, five of whom are in critical condition, and two adults, according to a statement from the Merseyside Police.
The murders became a flash point for anti-immigration sentiment after it was revealed by neighbors of the suspect that the murderer was the son of Rwandan parents, but was born in the U.K., according to the Daily Express.
Despite the suspect reportedly being raised by Christian parents, rioters assembled outside the Southport Islamic Society Mosque on Tuesday evening, chanting “No surrender!” and “English till I die!”
According to The Guardian, others heard chants of “Allah Allah, who the f**k is Allah?”
The rioters are allegedly members of the far-right English Defence League, an organization that has been referred to as explicitly anti-immigrant and Islamophobic by activists.
“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,” Merseyside police wrote in a statement.
Police also stated that the riots “involve many people who do not live in the Merseyside area or care about the people of Merseyside.”
Additionally, a number of officers were injured, police confirmed, while a number of cars were also damaged and a shop was broken into and looted in Southport. “This is completely unacceptable. We’re gathering evidence and those responsible will be brought to justice,” police said in an appeal on Facebook.
Online speculation and conspiracy theories claim that the suspect was not born in the U.K. and that he was being monitored by law enforcement before the attack, both of which are untrue.
“There has been much speculation and hypothesis around the status of a 17-year-old male who is currently in police custody and some individuals are using this to bring violence and disorder to our streets,” Assistant Chief Constable Alex Goss said.
“We have already said that the person arrested was born in the UK and speculation helps nobody at this time. Our officers should not have to face this, but we will be there tonight to ensure the safety of the local community who have suffered enough, and will arrest those involved in criminal behaviour.”
A 24-hour section 60 Order has been introduced in the area, police said, allowing officers enhanced stop and search powers to stop individuals “and is designed to minimize serious violence.”
Another, a section 34 Order, has also been introduced, allowing police to “direct people who are engaging in antisocial behaviour or are likely to become involved in such behaviour.”
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper condemned the conspiracy theories in an address to the House of Commons on Tuesday evening saying, “False information has already been extensively shared in the last 24 hours. Those who do this for their own purposes risk undermining a crucial criminal investigation, and I ask everyone to show some respect for the community in Southport and for families who are grieving and in trauma.”
Far-right activist, Tommy Robinson, who was arrested on suspected charges of terrorism on Sunday, went viral on Tuesday evening after he posted a rant to his X account in which he condemned the police for “allowing people into our towns and cities that are raping their way through our towns.”
“You care more for Afghanis, Somalis, Eritreans, Syrians, Pakistani... They are a danger to us,” Robinson went on. The post has garnered 46k likes and millions of views at the time of publishing.
MP Nigel Farage, whose Reform UK party has also been called anti-immigrant and racist by activist groups, echoed conspiracy theories about the suspect in a video posted to his X on Tuesday evening.
“Was this guy being monitored by the security services, some reports say he was, others less sure,” Farage said. “The police say it was a non-terror incident. Just as they said, the stabbing of an Army lieutenant colonel in uniform on the streets of Kent was a ‘non-terror incident.’ I just wonder if the truth is being withheld from us.”
Farage’s post has similarly garnered more than a million views at the time of publishing.
