Belfast Riots: Disorder Lessens, but Racism Suspected

Hilary Benn said there was less disorder on the streets of Belfast on Wednesday night as opposed to Tuesday, when rioters targeted ethnic minorities and foreign residents by torching homes and vehicles following a knife attack for which a Sudanese man has been charged with attempted murder.

But many of those who did clash with police on Wednesday were seeking to get to a hotel outside Belfast that has been targeted in the past for housing asylum seekers. Officers used water cannon to drive rioters back and Reuters saw what appeared to be plastic bullets, or baton rounds, on the street.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland declined to comment.

Asked on Sky News if violent scenes ⁠were racist riots rather than protests, Benn said: “Well, if you are targeting people on the basis of the colour of their skin, how else can you ‌describe them? That is racist thuggery”.

Police and politicians say much of the violence had been encouraged and coordinated online. In recent days lists have circulated showing where asylum seekers were living, the addresses of immigration businesses were published and ‌a nursing union official said ethnic minority nurses had been chased by masked men as they tried to get to work.