Afp

The newspaper La Jornada
Saturday, August 10, 2024, p. 24

London. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer yesterday asked the police to remain in alert in the face of possible racist and far-right riots in the country, on the same day that a court handed down a prison sentence for inciting hatred on the Internet.

The wave of violence erupted on July 30 after three schoolgirls were stabbed to death in Southport, north-west England, and then xenophobic anger spread across the country. The protests were fuelled by online rumours about the identity of the suspect, falsely portrayed as a Muslim asylum seeker.

Starmer, who faces his first crisis since taking office on July 5, yesterday called on the police to remain on alertDespite a certain return to calm after 10 days of unrest, the government fears that the resumption of the football championship this weekend could provoke new tensions due to the far-right’s links with hostile fans.

A court in Leeds yesterday sentenced Jordan Parlour, 28, to 20 months in prison, half of which is final, after he confessed to having written messages on Facebook with the aim of incite racial hatredThousands of police officers have been mobilized since the riots broke out.

Apart from isolated incidents in Northern Ireland last night, the rest of the country has not seen any new outbreaks of rioting since Tuesday, and the day before yesterday thousands of people peacefully took to the streets in several cities to protest against racism and Islamophobia.

Police say the suspect in the attack on the girls that sparked the protests is a 17-year-old boy born in Wales, and British media reported that his parents are Rwandan. Nearly 600 people have been arrested and about 150 charged so far. The prime minister promised convictions this week. fast.