• Suspected EDL supporters believed to be responsible for violence targeting a mosque 5 minutes walk away from the Southport stabbing incident.
• The mosque was targeted by far-right groups, with police officers injured. Multiple right-wing personalities have helped propagate the flare-up.
After three children were stabbed to death on Monday by a 17-year-old boy, speculation and rumours spread on social media quickly. Many labelled the attacker as an asylum seeker of Syrian descent and of Islamic faith. Far-right personality figures such as Nigel Farage, the current MP and leader of the political party Reform, had come out indirectly, giving fresh air to the view that this may have been a terrorist attack and that the police force may be trying to cover it up. Others, such as Britain First, have directly called the attacker a terrorist and have even launched a petition for Southport’s attacker’s name to be released while accusing the Merseyside police of cover-up.
Nigel Farag, one of Britain’s most popular politicians, can be seen trying to equate Mondays stabbings on terrorism thus fuelling islamophobia and the far right mob
The police have released a statement
On Monday, Merseyside police clearly stated that the incident is not currently being treated as ‘terror-related’. Officers later revealed that the 17-year-old offender in question was born in Wales and thus was not a foreign asylum seeker, as the rumours on social media perpetuated. During the evening, Merseyside police reported that officers are dealing with ‘disturbances’ in Southport with bottles and wheelie bins being thrown at them. It can be seen from video footage that far-right rioters were throwing bricks too.
The riot occurred near a mosque, and police tried to cordon off the far-right mob. The devastation the mob spawned was not to be unnoticed. It was reported that a police van had been set alight, with a shop broken into and looted, while multiple police officers were reported injured. Chief Constable Serena Kennedy had called the rioters ‘thugs’ in a statement on X. An eyewitness described the disorder as ‘mental crowds’ smashing windows and targeting police.
The increasing Islamophobia and mob rule
After the Hamas offensive on October 7, islamophobia in the UK more than tripled from October 7 to February 7. 2010 Islamophobic incidents were recorded during that period, a steep rise from the 600 that occurred the year before in the same period of the year. Although there isn’t as much data for recent months, it’s likely the attack in Southport, although not terror-related and not by a foreigner, will lead to an increase in Islamophobic attacks in the near future. The mob-led disorder that took place near a mosque in Southport may be the tip of the iceberg for what’s to come if there truly is a terror-related incident that is associated with someone of the Islamic faith or if there is another major terror incident in a western country like that of 9/11. There will likely be a far greater response by the far right and secular institutions, with far more violence and attacks on the Muslim community, along with attacks on mosques and religious buildings and properties. The future for the Muslim community in the West is bleak, and the anti-immigrant sentiment that is continuing to grow will only exacerbate and fasten the divide.
