The British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has announced the establishment of a “standing army” of specialized police officers as part of a strategy to swiftly address the violent unrest that has impacted the country over the past week. On Monday, Starmer convened an emergency meeting with ministers and police chiefs, including the head of Scotland Yard, Mark Rowley, to discuss how to stop the violence.
The unrest initially erupted in Southport, located in northwest England, last Tuesday, and Starmer has attributed the turmoil to far-right activists and misinformation disseminated on social media. This violence followed a stabbing incident during a dance class that resulted in the deaths of three girls. False rumors that spread online claimed that the suspect was a Muslim and an asylum seeker, which incited attacks on immigrants and Muslims.
Police have confirmed that the 17-year-old suspect was born in the UK and have stated that they do not consider the stabbings to be a terrorist attack. Starmer remarked that a “standing army” of specially trained officers is prepared to be deployed to support local forces wherever further unrest may arise. “Regardless of the apparent motivation, this is not protest. This is pure violence, and we will not tolerate attacks on mosques or our Muslim communities,” Starmer stated.
The unrest has also led to assaults on hotels housing asylum seekers, where angry individuals broke windows and set fires until police dispersed the crowd and evacuated residents. The number of police officers hospitalized for injuries over the past six days has increased after being struck by bricks, bottles, and large wooden posts.
Oliver Coppard, the Mayor of South Yorkshire, where one of the hotels was attacked, attributed the violence to “far-right individuals.” “As Keir stated, and as any decent person would say, I believe these are far-right individuals who have attacked some of the most vulnerable people in our society, and there is absolutely no excuse for that,” Coppard told the BBC.
A spokesperson for Starmer indicated that no requests had been made to involve the military. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper promised that there would be severe consequences for those involved, stating that the government would support penalties ranging from prison sentences to travel bans. Police have arrested around 420 individuals so far.
The Home Office, responsible for law and order, has offered mosques greater protection under a new “rapid response process” designed to promptly address the threat of further attacks on places of worship. After Monday’s meeting, Starmer’s spokesperson noted that social media companies have not done enough to prevent the spread of misinformation that has fueled far-right violence. They promised that anyone inciting disorder—online or on the streets—could face imprisonment.
Some of the misinformation originated from foreign states. “The misinformation we have seen online is receiving reinforcement from known bot activity, which, as I mentioned, can be linked to state-sponsored activities,” said the spokesperson in a statement following the meeting.