Bangladesh students step up protests to press PM’s resignation

LONDON: Police across Britain braced for more violence on Saturday after another night of unrest by far-right protesters that saw four officers hospitalized during a tense standoff outside a mosque in the northeastern English city of Sunderland.
Protesters threw beer kegs, fire extinguishers and rocks at police during the violent riots on Friday night. A car was set on fire and a police station was attacked. Many of those involved were from out of town and had traveled to cause mayhem, according to police.
The violence in Sunderland, in which ten people have been arrested, is the latest outburst of violence over the past few days and nights, reportedly sparked by a stabbing rampage at a dance class in the north-west seaside town of Southport on Monday, which left three girls dead and several injured. A 17-year-old male was arrested.
False rumors spread online about the young man's identity as a Muslim and an immigrant sparked anger among far-right supporters. Suspects under the age of 18 are not usually named in the UK, but Judge Andrew Menary ordered that Axel Rudakubana, born in Wales to Rwandan parents, be identified in part to stem the spread of disinformation.
At a press conference on Saturday after the allegation, Northumbria Police Chief Constable Mark Hall described the violent protests in Sunderland as “inexcusable” and that four officers had been injured, three as a direct result of the unrest. He also said that the horse rider sustained serious injuries in the accident and is being treated in hospital.
“Over the course of the evening, our officers encountered serious and sustained levels of violence,” he said. “Make no mistake, if you were involved last night, expect to meet the full force of the law.”
More than 20 protests are expected over the weekend, including in Belfast, Cardiff, Liverpool and Manchester. Police said many of them are organized online by shadow far-right groups that mobilize support with phrases such as “enough is enough”, “save our children” and “stop the boats”. Counter-protests are also expected with Stand Up To Racism, which protests against Islamophobia and the far right.
Over the weekend, police deployed more officers, made more jail cells available and will deploy tracking and facial recognition technology.
Britain's new Labor Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said on social media platform X Saturday that criminals attacking the police and adding disorder will “pay a price” for their violence and that the police have the full support of the government to “take the strongest possible action.” “
Far-right protesters have staged several violent protests since the knife attack, clashing with police outside a mosque in Southport on Tuesday – near the scene of the horrific stabbing – and throwing beer cans, bottles and flares near the Prime Minister's office in London the next day. . People in Southport are understandably angry at the organized acts of random violence which accentuate their shock and sadness.
Monday's attack on children at a Taylor Swift-themed summer dance class shocked a country where knife crime is a long-standing and troubling problem, although mass stabbings are rare.
Rudakubana was charged with murder for the attack that killed Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Bebe King, 6. He was also charged with 10 counts of attempted murder for the eight children and two adults who were injured.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer blamed the violence on “far-right hatred” and vowed to end the chaos. He said police in the UK would be given more resources to stop “the breakdown of law and order on our streets”.
The prime minister said at a press conference on Thursday that the street violence was “clearly caused by far-right hatred” as he announced a program to allow police to better share intelligence between agencies and make arrests quickly.
“This is coordinated; it's intentional,” Starmer said. “This is not a protest that got out of hand. It's a group of individuals who are absolutely committed to violence.”