Anti-migrant riots broke out last night in Belfast , where dozens of protesters set fire to rubbish bins, vehicles and a bus in the city centre, blocking several streets, following the brutal stabbing of a forty-year-old man believed to be a Sudanese refugee, captured on shocking video that went viral on media and social media.

Some residents were evacuated from a building in the city center, which caught fire during protests, during which Molotov cocktails were also thrown.

The Northern Ireland Police (PSNI) intervened in force to stop the violent protests fueled by appeals spread online by groups of so-called "patriots" linked to the far right: a post by the extremist Tommy Robinson was reposted on X by Elon Musk, complete with a message to inflame tensions: "Only by protesting repeatedly and loudly can there be change!".

The trigger was the attempted murder charge against the 30-year-old attacker, who had been granted asylum under the previous Conservative government after arriving in Belfast via Dublin in February 2023.

The appeals for calm launched by Keir Starmer's Labour government and local authorities have thus proved futile. The victim was seriously injured, with significant facial, neck, and back injuries, in the attack that took place last night in the Kinnaird Avenue area of north Belfast.

Footage circulating online shows the attacker pinning the 40-year-old to the ground and stabbing him repeatedly with a knife, in what the Daily Telegraph described as an apparent beheading attempt , before passers-by intervened to stop him.

One of them is seen brandishing a hurling stick, the traditional Irish sport. Police have stated that there is no indication of a terrorist attack, while speculation has gained traction that the thirty-year-old may have been in a fit of rage. He is now due to appear before Belfast Magistrates' Court.

Prime Minister Starmer addressed the incident, calling it "abhorrent" and calling for zero tolerance for such violent incidents on the streets of the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, Northern Ireland Minister Hilary Benn called in the House of Commons for violent protests to be avoided to avoid further negative repercussions on local communities.

There was immediate political conflict, with Nigel Farage, leader of Trump's Reform UK party, fueling tensions by calling for the identity and immigration status of the attacker to be revealed, as well as maintaining that "the public must know the truth." His party even called for an entry ban for all Sudanese citizens without distinction.

Exactly a year ago, there were further anti-migrant riots in Northern Ireland, resulting in a hunt for Romanians (as well as clashes with the police) in the wake of the arrest of two foreign-born teenagers accused of the attempted rape of a girl . And recently, the Kingdom has been rocked by tensions and clashes over the case of Henry Nowak: the 18-year-old stabbed to death on December 3rd in a Southampton street by a young British man of Sikh Indian descent , Vickrum Digwa, and then handcuffed and left in agony by the first two officers to arrive on the scene, who had initially been convinced by the killer that the victim was a racist attacker.

Thus, the sense of insecurity is growing throughout the country, with the case of Talay Riley, a 35-year-old Grammy-winning singer-songwriter who has written songs for stars such as Dua Lipa and Britney Spears, who was stabbed to death in a London garden in recent days.

(Unioneonline)

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