An angry far-right mob have stormed into a hotel housing migrants and asylum seekers, hurling chairs and releasing fire extinguishers on riot police, while setting bins and furniture alight.
Hundreds of violent anti-immigration protesters clad in balaclavas and draped in St George’s flags have clashed with officers trying to protect the Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham, South Yorkshire since around 2pm this afternoon. At least one cop has been injured in the chaos outside the hotel on the northern outskirts of the post-industrial town.
It marks yet another day of violent riots of Britain’s streets, with crowds in Middlesbrough setting fire to a car and pushing burning wheelie bins at police, while thugs in Rotherham smash windows and doors as riot police use shields to push them back.
Meanwhile, a peaceful protest in Bolton descended into chaos when two groups of demonstrators clashed. One charged towards the town hall shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ while the other waved England flags.
Similar scenes could be seen in Weymouth, as around 400 protesters from opposing sides gathered on the seafront to chant at each other. One side could be heard chanting ‘Nazis go home’, while the other shouted ‘Tommy Robinson‘.
The outbursts come after three young girls were stabbed to death in Southport on July 29.
While photos from Rotherham have shown some occupants looking out of the hotel window onto rioters, it is still unclear if the migrants and asylum seekers housed in the property have been able to evacuate. MailOnline has contacted the Home Office.
Other photos appear to show far-right protesters breaching the hotel. The BBC reported that balaclava-clad people were seen forcing their way inside.
Objects and pieces of wood were flung at officers who had lined up in front of the building with at least one cop in riot gear being carried away by their colleagues. The grass around the hotel appears to have been set on fire as well.
One person’s face was seen completely covered with a Union Jack mask while they waved a large England flag outside the hotel while others swung back cans of bears while chanting offensive slogans.
Keir Starmer vowed rioters would ‘regret’ taking part in ‘far-right thuggery’ after a fifth day of violence in England as the Government announced emergency security for mosques amid the threat of further disorder.
A bin on fire outside the Holiday Inn Migrant hotel in Rotherham
Protesters try to cram into the migrant hotel through a damaged fire exit in Rotherham
A man looks out of The Holiday Inn hotel in Rotherham as counter demonstrators stand outside with signs saying ‘refugees welcome’
Two other residents in the hotel look out as protests begin in Rotherham, Britain
A fire extinguisher is sprayed at riot police in Rotherham
Police officers stand guard as counter-protesters push against the police cordon on the day of a protest against illegal immigration, in Bolton
Police officers stand near the broken windows of the hotel during an anti-immigration protest
Police officers detain a protester who broke through the police line on August 4, 2024 in Weymouth
A group of protesters were kept apart from counter protesters in Bolton, this afternoon
A car burns on Parliament Road after it was set alight by far-right activists holding a demonstration in Middlesbrough
A group of protesters were kept apart from counter protesters in Bolton this afternoon
Police try to hold back anti-immigrant protestors on Weymouth seafront
Police detain a man during an anti-immigration protest in Middlesbrough
A car lies overturned and on fire during an ant-immigration protest in Middlesbrough
A police officer helping a woman who has fallen over during an anti-immigration protest in Middlesbrough
A thug throws a brick at a parked car during an anti-immigration protest in Middlesbrough
A car burns after being overturned during an anti-immigration protest in Middlesbrough
A group of young men held a banner that read ‘we’re not far right we’re just right’ while another placard being waved around said: ‘Stopping the boats means stopping the stabbings’.
The protest has already been strongly criticise by anti-racism groups as well as campaigner Brendan Cox, whose MP wife Jo Cox was killed in her West Yorkshire constituency in 2016.
He said: ‘The scenes in Rotherham aren’t a protest, they aren’t even a far right riot, they are an ongoing attempt to murder the men, women and children inside by burning them alive.
‘The stench of these days will hang around those who incited and justified it for the rest of their lives.’
An anti-racism counter protest at the scene has increased tensions for police, who arrived to find banners reading: ‘Refugees welcome: Stop the far right.’
In a televised address to the nation, Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned an attack on a hotel housing asylum seekers in Rotherham and promised those involved in unrest would ‘face the full force of the law’.
Speaking from Downing Street, Sir Keir suggested that rioters taking to the streets, and those ‘whipping up this action online and then running away themselves,’ would face consequences.
Meanwhile, the Home Office announced mosques would be offered greater protection under a new ‘rapid response process’ designed to quickly tackle the threat of further attacks on places of worship.
‘People in this country have a right to be safe, and yet we’ve seen Muslim communities targeted, attacks on mosques,’ the Prime Minister said on Sunday.
‘Other minority communities singled out, Nazi salutes in the street, attacks on the police, wanton violence alongside racist rhetoric, so no, I won’t shy away from calling it what it is: far-right thuggery.’
Residential properties and businesses attacked on a street in Middlesbrough
A car is vandalised as far-right activists hold a demonstration in Middlesbrough
A policeman tussles with an anti-immigrant protestors near Weymouth seafront
Police officers detain a protester who broke through the police line
Police officers deploy as far-right activists hold a demonstration in Middlesbrough on August 04
Property is vandalised as far-right activists in Middlesbrough
Anti-immigration protesters hold Union Jacks on Weymouth seafront. A counter demo by Stand Up To Racism gathered at the same location further down
Police officers detain a man on the day of an anti-immigration protest
Counter-protesters push against the police cordon on the day of a protest against illegal immigration Bolton
Counter-protesters shout at police officers as they push against a cordon in Bolton
Sir Keir indicated the response to the violence could mirror elements of how the 2011 riots were handled, at which time he was director of public prosecutions.
‘We do have standing arrangements for law enforcement which means that we can get arrests, charge remanded in custody and convictions done very quickly,’ he said.
‘I myself was part of that in 2011 when I was director of public prosecutions, and I’m determined we will do whatever it takes to bring these thugs to justice as quickly as possible.’
Ministers have suggested that courts could sit 24 hours to fast-track prosecutions while police forces have measures in place to draft in extra officers to tackle potential unrest.
It comes as anti-immigration rioters attacked police and smashed the windows of a hotel in Rotherham on the fifth day of unrest in England.
Masked men launched lengths of wood and sprayed fire extinguishers at police officers outside a Holiday Inn Express and some stormed into the hotel, with reports of a fire inside.
A police helicopter circled overhead, and at least one injured officer in riot gear was carried away as the atmosphere turned febrile.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the deliberate torching of a hotel where people were known to be inside was ‘utterly appalling’ and South Yorkshire Police have Government backing to take ‘the strongest action’.
Ms Cooper said: ‘Britain is a proud and tolerant country, and nobody should make any excuses for the shameful actions of the hooligans, thugs and extremist groups who have been attacking police officers, looting local shops or attacking people based on the colour of their skin.
‘In light of the disgraceful threats and attacks that local mosques have also faced in many communities, the Government is providing rapid additional support through the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme, alongside the support from local police forces and we repeat that anyone involved in this disorder and violence will face the full force of the law.
‘As a nation we will not tolerate criminal behaviour, dangerous extremism, and racist attacks that go against everything our country stands for.’
Humza Yousaf has called for the army to be called in to stop ‘thugs’ causing disorder on the streets.
‘It doesn’t look like, to me, the police have a handle on the situation,’ the former first minister of Scotland said.
‘The police have not been able to protect those that are in the Holiday Inn,’ he added. The army can help to get control where the police are unable.’
Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also condemned the violence this evening.
He said: ‘The shocking scenes we’re seeing on the streets of Britain have nothing to do with the tragedy in Southport.
‘This is violent, criminal behaviour that has no place in our society. The police have our full support to deal with these criminals swiftly and they must face the full weight of the law.’
Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak condemned the violence on ‘X’ this evening
A bin has been set on fire in Middlesbrough as police officers deal with an anti-immigration protest
A car burns after being overturned during an anti-immigration protest in Middlesbrough
A car burns after being overturned during an anti-immigration protest in Middlesbrough
A bin is chucked towards a fire as a group of far right protestes gather in Rotherham
A woman and a man take cover as objects are thrown during an anti-immigration protest outside the Holiday Inn Express
Police officers in front of a smashed window as trouble flares during an anti-immigration protest outside the Holiday Inn Express
A protester kicks a window at a hotel in Rotherham, as a far-right group joins
Extinguishers are blown at police as trouble flares up outside The Holiday Inn in Rotherham
A table is flung at a police officers wearing riot gear while others try to break into The Holiday Inn hotel in Rotherham
Police officers in front of a smashed window as trouble flares during an anti-immigration protest outside the Holiday Inn Express
Police officers tackle an anti-immigration protest in Middlesbrough
Police officers stand guard as counter-protesters push against the police cordon
A police officers is injured as trouble flares during an anti-immigration protest outside the Holiday Inn Express
South Yorkshire’s mayor Oliver Coppard said he is ‘utterly appalled by the violence’ in Rotherham.
‘What we’re seeing is not protest, it is brutal thuggery directed against some of the most vulnerable people in our society’, he said in a statement.
‘The people carrying out these attacks do not represent the beautiful, brilliant place and people I know. We will come after those carrying out this violence with the full force of the law’, he added.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said on X: ‘The criminal, violent attack on a hotel housing asylum seekers in Rotherham is utterly appalling. Deliberately setting fire to a building with people known to be inside.
‘South Yorkshire Police have full Government support for the strongest action against those responsible.’
Watching the scenes of chaos unfold, former home secretary and Tory party leader hopeful James Cleverly said rioters should be hit with ‘the full weight of the law’.
‘There is not and can never be any excuse, justification or rationale for behaviour like this,’ he tweeted. ‘This should be condemned by everybody, and those taking part should expect to be met with the full weight of the law.’
IGH, the parent company of the Holiday Inn chain, told the BBC: ‘The safety and security of our guests and colleagues is always our priority.’
A Sky News journalist was approached by a group of masked men with ‘potential weapons’ in their hands while reporting on the scenes in Middlesbrough this evening.
The moment was caught on camera as Charlotte Leeming and her team were forced to move back.
Meanwhile, the sight of demonstrators attacking a hotel in the belief it is housing migrants is ‘almost incomprehensible’, the managing director of the Hope not Hate advocacy group has said.
Nick Lowles said he was ‘lost for words’ to describe the scenes at a Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham.
‘The fact that hundreds of people have targeted a hotel that is housing migrants, it is almost incomprehensible,’ he told Sky News.
‘They knew that people were in that hotel and they consciously tried to set fire to it.
‘Communities are so scared, we have to rebuild.’
Mr Lowles said agitators have been over-simplifying stories to whip up hate.
Objects thrown at the hotel as trouble flares during an anti-immigration protest outside the Holiday Inn Express
An aerial view of the anti-migration protesters stand outside of the Holiday Inn Express
Police officers and people during an anti-immigration protest outside the Holiday Inn Express
Anti-immigration supporters outside the Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham today
A police officer moves a burning bin in Middlesbrough
Police officers clash with anti-migration protesters outside of the Holiday Inn Express
Rioters outside the Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham, kicking off another day of chaos
An anti-immigration protester wearing a Union Jack mask outside of the Holiday Inn Express
Mounted police stand in front of anti-racism counter protesters holding placards outside of the Holiday Inn Express
Police officers and anti-immigration supporters outside the Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham
Police officers and dogs patrol as anti-racism counter protesters and anti-migration protesters gather outside of the Holiday Inn
Police officers and anti-immigration supporters standing outside the hotel housing migrants in Rotherham
Protesters clash with police outside the Holiday Inn in Rotherham
Anti-racism counter protesters hold placards outside of the Holiday Inn Express
People carrying placards attend an anti-racism protest outside Holiday Inn Express
A person carries a sign reading ‘Refugees are welcome here’ outside the hotel housing migrants
Police officers and anti-immigration supporters outside the Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham
An aerial view of the Holiday Inn Express, which has seen rioters gather outside it for another day of chaos in the UK
Mounted police stand opposite anti-racism counter protesters holding placards outside of the Holiday Inn Express
Police horses outside the Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham amid the protests
People carrying placards attend an anti-racism protest outside Holiday Inn Express
Elsewhere in Middlesbrough, more than 300 protesters started marching towards the city’s Cenotaph.
They carried a banner that read: ‘Tom Jones is Welsh, Axel Rudakubana isn’t’ Rudakubana is the 17-year-old accused for murdering the three little girls in Southport and is charged with attempted murder of 10 others.
His parents were born in Rwanda before moving to the UK in 2002. Rudakubana was born in Cardiff in 2006 before moving to near Southport in 2013.
Others marching through the city chanted ‘we want our country back’ as they made their way through the city centre.
At least two people were taken away in handcuffs within the first half hour, while several pieces of slate were thrown, along with vapes and full plastic bottles.
Some people kicked bollards into the road so that police vehicles driving ahead of the group could not get through, and one man sat on the bonnet of a police car to stop it from moving.
One Middlesbrough read: ‘We’re going to be paying for this, and for what?
‘This has got nothing to do with three little girls that have lost their lives. They’ve used it to cause utter mayhem on our streets.’
A person was seen being stretchered into an ambulance after an incident at the Swatters Carr pub.
Cleveland Police said officers have made nine arrests so far relating to violent disorder offences in Middlesbrough.
The force said the main areas affected are Parliament Road, Waterloo Road, and the area around the university.
Assistant Chief Constable David Felton said: ‘We are urging members of the public to stay away from Middlesbrough while officers respond to violent disorder in the town.
‘We have a high policing presence responding to the disorder, and the priority remains to protect people and communities.
‘We will continue to make arrests and deal robustly with anyone shown to be intent on committing violence and causing harm.’
The fresh day of riots comes as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is set to go on holiday with his family, it is understood, a decision which has been slammed by MPs.
Tory leadership hopeful Robert Jenrick criticised Sir Keir for the getaway plan, branding it ‘completely wrong’ amid a period of chaos in the country.
Police officers detain a man during an anti-immigration protest, in Rotherham
Dogs are being utilised by cops to try and quell the violence
A police dog attacks a protester in Rotherham, during a protest in the West Yorkshire town this afternoon
A man is detained by police officers as people protest in Middlesbrough
Banner that reads ‘Tom Jones is Welsh, Axel Rudakubana isn’t’ through Middlesbrough
A man is detained by police officers as people protest in Middlesbrough
A man is detained as Far-right activists hold a demonstration in Middlesbrough
Trouble flares up outside of The Holiday Inn, Rotherham, South Yorkshire, where asylum seekers and immigrants are housed
Police officers detain a man during an anti-immigration demonstration outside the Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham
Police officers with protesters as trouble flares during an anti-immigration demonstration outside the Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham
A police officer attempts to extinguish a wheelie bin that has been set alight by anti-migration protesters outside of the Holiday Inn Express
No10 did not dispute the claims when approached by MailOnline but said the Prime Minister is working this weekend and next week.
The disruption across England and Northern Ireland began on Tuesday in Southport, after three little girls were killed in a knife attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class.
Slamming Sir Keir’s alleged plans to go on holiday, Mr Jenrick told GBN Live: ‘I think it would be completely wrong for the Prime Minister to go on holiday whilst parts of Britain are burning.
‘I’m sure that the government, like the whole country, sees the severity of the situation.’
The politician added: ‘I know they’re trying to get a grip on it and I welcome some of the measures they’ve already taken, like having more persecutors, having the courts sit weekends, but this is a very serious situation.’
However, Chris Webb, the Labour MP for Blackpool South, said Sir Keir ‘has to have family time’.
He told LBC’s Matthew Wright: ‘The government will continue and we’ve got an excellent Deputy Prime Minister.
‘Keir has to have family time, there’s no doubt about it. Every Prime Minister has to have that family time and that break but from what I know of Keir – and I’ve met him many times, and sitting here in Blackpool several times – he will be continuing to work and monitor the situation wherever he is on holiday.’
Cities such as Hull, Liverpool, Bristol, Manchester and Belfast have seen vehicles burned, shops destroyed, pedestrians attacked and police officers injured this week following the Southport stabbings on Monday.
Arrests have been made across the country, with police warning of more to come once CCTV, social media and body-worn camera footage has been scoured.
There was violence on Saturday in towns and cities such as Hull, Liverpool, Stoke-on-Trent, Nottingham, Bristol, Manchester, Blackpool and Belfast, which saw several police officers injured. It followed a riot in Sunderland on Friday evening.
A community library on the Merseyside that only opened last year after months of fundraising was set on fire last night as more than 300 people descended on the streets of a deprived city suburb.
Merseyside Police have charged two people with committing violent disorder in Liverpool city centre on Saturday.
Officers witnessed a group throwing stones, bricks and missiles at officers in the Paradise Street area.
Jimmy Bailey, 45, of Station Avenue, Ellesmere Port, has been charged with violent disorder.
He has been remanded into custody to appear at Liverpool Magistrates’ Court at 9.45am on Monday August 5.
Declan Geiran, 29, of Kelso Road, Liverpool, will appear at the same court after he was charged with violent disorder and arson (to a police vehicle).
An attempt was made to set a police van alight while it was parked in William Brown Street on Saturday.
The flames were quickly extinguished before significant damage or harm could be caused, the force said.
BRISTOL: A protester holding a piece of concrete walks towards riot police as clashes erupt in Bristol yesterday
NOTTINGHAM: Police officers detain a woman during a protest in Nottingham Market Square yesterday afternoon
LIVERPOOL: Police officers attend to a shell-shocked colleague after a face-off with protesters on Saturday
LIVERPOOL: Charred wheelie bins outside the Spellow Hub community library after a night of violent disorder in Liverpool
LIVERPOOL: Council workers clear debris from County Road after a night of violent disorder
HULL: Tyres had been set on fire as black smoke from the blaze filled the city’s streets
As firefighters tried to put on the flames that engulfed Spellow Lane Library Hub – which also functions as a food bank – rioters threw a missile at the engine, before breaking the rear window of a nearby cab.
Shocking photos from this morning show the burnt out interior of the library, with bookshelves tipped on their side, and glass surrounding the remaining computers.
One officer was shoved off his motorbike while another was looked after by colleagues after appearing shell-shocked following a violent confrontation with a protester.
Elsewhere, shameless looters took advantage of the violent mayhem, stealing everything from phones, shoes and wine from local shops.
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