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Members of the community in Southport have been clearing up after suspected far-right supporters rioted and attacked a mosque following a peaceful vigil for the young victims of a brutal knife attack.
Police accused individuals who do not live in Merseyside or care about its people for using lies and disinformation around the suspect’s identity “to bring violence and disorder to our streets”, in which paramedics said 39 police officers were injured.
Police have detained a 17-year-old boy from Lancashire, born in Cardiff, after Monday’s shocking attack in which 11 children were stabbed – three fatally – in a Taylor Swift-themed dance class. The three victims have been named as Bebe King, aged 6, Elsie Dot Stancombe, aged 7, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, aged 9.
A 10-year-old boy was among those helping to clear up the debris on Wednesday after the “horrible” and “really scary” riots broke out near his home, telling a reporter, as deputy prime minister Angela Rayner urged the public not to indulge in “disrespectful” conspiracies and let the police do their jobs.
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‘Why are we being targeted?’: Mosque chair says he feared rioters would break into building
Southport mosque chair Ibrahim Hussein said that, at one point on Tuesday night, he believed the rioters would break into the sacred building.
He said: “It was absolutely awful. We don’t know why we are the focus of these people who came round throwing abuse and throwing missiles and throwing bricks. We don’t know why we’re being targeted in that way.”
Mr Hussein said he understood why the teenager arrested over the deaths of the three children on Monday had yet to be named, adding: “It’s not for me to say what the police should or shouldn’t do.”
He added: “But it would have been helpful if they had said that he is not Muslim. I would love them to do that. Not that that it makes a big difference because, even if he is a Muslim, why should that reflect on the whole community?”
Police granted more time to question Southport suspect
Detectives have been granted more time to question the 17-year-old arrested on suspicion of the Southport knife attacks.
The teenager, who has not been named because of his age, remains in custody having been arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder.
After the first 48 hours, police can apply for permission from magistrates to hold a suspect for up to a total of 96 hours without charge.
‘We thought rioters were going to burn the place down,’ says Southport mosque chair
Southport mosque chair Ibrahim Hussein said: “I would like to thank the police very, very, very much indeed. I’m very sorry for the causalities that the police took. They took a very bad beating.
“I would love to make it better but there’s nothing I can do about it. But I would like to thank them for their support because at one point we thought they [the rioters] were coming in and they were going to burn the place down.”
Mr Hussein said the mosque was open and added: “I will pray for the whole of Southport, I will pray for the victims of the awful attack on Monday, I will pray for the police and I will pray for the whole community to stay as beautiful as it has always been.”
He said the Muslim community still felt vulnerable, adding he had seen messages the day before indicating something was going to happen.
Mr Hussein described the attack on the dance class as “absolutely heartbreaking”.
How lies and disinformation about Southport knife attack suspect led to riots
The outpouring of rage in Southport on Tuesday night came after disinformation about the knife attack suspect’s identity was amplified and seen by millions on social media.
Merseyside Police said on Monday night that a 17-year-old male from Banks in Lancashire, who was born in Cardiff, had been arrested on suspicion of murder.
Despite this – and laws in the UK making it a criminal offence to identify a suspect who is a minor, at least until legal proceedings have completed – false claims began to circulate online purporting to name the suspect as “Ali Al-Shakati” and claiming he had arrived in the UK on a small boat in 2023.
One such source of this disinformation, which also falsely claimed the suspect was known to MI6, was an outlet calling itself Channel3 Now – whose post at 5:51pm on Monday featuring an article on the attack racked up close to two million views on X, formerly Twitter, before being deleted.
According to journalist Katharine Denkinson, who concluded that the post was “racially motivated click-bait”, the website purports to be based in the United States, but has no named journalists and appears to have started out 12 years ago sharing Russian-language videos of men in cars before pivoting to US news five years ago.
Boy, 10, helps clear up streets after ‘really scary’ riot near his home
Sebastian Taylor, aged 10, was helping sweep up near the mosque with his sister Evelyn, seven, and his mother Gemma.
“Last night was just horrible, so we were like ‘you know what, we should help because everyone was helping’,” he said, adding: “We were sweeping up bricks and metal and bottles and we were sweeping up burnt pieces of bins which had been on fire.”
He said he watched as local volunteers removed all the bricks from a wall which was partially demolished around the mosque so it can be rebuilt. Those helping move the bricks said builders in the area had already said they would help repair walls wrecked in the riot for free.
Sebastian said his family lives just a short distance from where the violence erupted. He said: “It was really scary. Mum told us to go upstairs for some strange reason.”
Mrs Taylor said: “The first I saw was a load of people walking down our road which you wouldn’t walk down unless you lived down there. I thought ‘it’s happening’ and got them all upstairs and shut all the blinds. Unfortunately, you can’t keep them away from it if it’s right on our doorstep and they looked out of the window.”
Green Party condemns rioting by ‘fascist thugs’ in Southport
The Green Party has condemned the rioting by “fascist thugs” in Southport.
Amanda Onwuemene, the party’s spokesperson for policing and domestic safety, said: “The far-right is using disinformation around the horrific murders of children in Southport to do what it always does: spread hatred and fear.
“The attacks on a mosque and police by fascist thugs yesterday are an appalling violation of a community that has already suffered a devastating blow. The Green Party condemns this violence and stands in solidarity with the people of Southport against those who seek to divide it.”
Rayner criticises ‘disrespectful’ social media theories and urges public to let police ‘do their work’
Angela Rayner criticised “disrespectful” social media theories circulating online in the wake of the Southport stabbings, urging people to allow the police to establish the facts.
Speaking on ITV’s This Morning, the deputy prime minister said: “I think there’s been a couple of instances recently where, especially particularly online, where theories and things are whipped up, whereas actually it turns out to be not true or not the full picture.
“And I think there’s a culture now where people want to instantly get the facts, but actually it’s important that police and those people that are doing the work are able to carry out that work.
“And it’s important for justice as well, because we have law and order in the UK, and it’s important that those authorities are able to establish the facts and then to be able to bring those forward.
“But speculation and some of the untruths that have been put around social media, not only is that creating tensions and fear in the community, but it’s disrespectful to family who maybe want those answers that haven’t got those answers.”
Ms Rayner warned that the speculation online is “really unhelpful for the police”, calling for members of the public to “step back and just wait and then that information will come but allow the police to do their work”.
Brooke Kinsella | Here’s what I want the families in Southport to know
In a piece for Independent Voices, former Eastenders star Brooke Kinsella writes:
Like so many others, the tragic news from Southport has left me utterly heartbroken. It is simply too much for all of us to comprehend: three innocent children, taken from this world in a senseless act of violence.
As I hold my breath, waiting for updates on the condition of the others, a wave of familiar dread washes over me. I know the pain that these families are now enduring. I have lived it.
In 2008, my beloved brother, Ben, was murdered in an unprovoked attack. He was just 16. The world my family knew shattered around us. Time stood still, and yet, it moved with relentless speed, carrying us into a reality we never imagined. Grief, a monstrous, all-consuming entity, became our constant companion.
To the families of Southport, I offer you my deepest condolences. There are no words that can even begin to alleviate your suffering but please know that you are not alone. There is sadly a community of people who understand your agony, who will walk with you through this darkness.
GoFundMe page for victim’s family raises £15,000
A fundraiser has been set up for the family of Elsie Dot Stancombe, one of the three young girls to have been killed in Monday’s attack, which left eight other children and two adults injured.
The GoFundMe page states that, on Monday, “our beloved Elsie – daughter, granddaughter, niece, and cherished friend – left us in the saddest of circumstances.
“During this heartbreaking time, we witnessed the emergency services act with extraordinary bravery, compassion, and strength. Their efforts were a beacon of hope in our darkest moments, and we are profoundly grateful.
“Our deepest thanks go out to everyone who has supported us. We also extend our heartfelt condolences to the other families affected by this tragedy.
“Elsie’s parents, Jennifer and David, need time to grieve and support their other daughter, Rosie. We kindly request donations to allow them to heal as a family and ensure Rosie has the best possible support to grow and thrive. Any contribution, no matter the size, would mean the world to us.”
It has raised £15,000 since being set up 12 hours ago.
’I did what I could’: Joel Verite the hero personal trainer who tackled knifeman speaks out
The man who rushed into the dance studio to help the victims and who locked eyes with the attacker has said he is “overwhelmed” with the amount of messages of love and support that he has since received.
Joel Verite has been widely praised after it emerged that the window cleaner ran into the building to help. In a statement on Facebook, he said: “At the end of the day this isn’t about me, I did what I could and what I thought was right at that very moment, I wish I could have done more but sadly it was too late for some.
“ I have given one interview only with Sky News which is the only one I have done and will be doing at this very moment in time, I don’t feel like it is right for me at this current time to be talking about the events in detail whilst families are grieving their children’s losses and other families are at their children’s bedsides whilst they fight for their lives along with the adults also currently in hospital.
“I am being hounded for more, but like I said this isn’t about me, and if I feel it is right talking about this in the future then I will make that decision when the time is right. Please understand this has had an effect on myself and respect my privacy.
“My heart goes out to every single person involved in this tragic attack, my thoughts are with them and will remain to be with them at this horrendously difficult time.”
Source: independent.co.uk
