Thousands rally in Belfast against anti-immigrant violence after stabbing allegations
Thousands flooded Belfast to reject anti-immigrant violence after a stabbing charge sparked riots that left homes burning, people displaced and police injured.
Thousands of people packed central Belfast and turned a week of anti-immigrant violence into a public rebuke of racism and mob disorder. The rally came after nights of unrest across Northern Ireland, where homes and cars were set on fire after a stabbing that police say led to attempted murder charges against a 30-year-old man from Sudan.
Police said the victim, a man in his 40s, suffered serious injuries to his eyes, face and back. As the unrest spread, authorities said people were targeted because of their skin color, a sign that the violence moved quickly beyond anger over one attack and into overt racial intimidation.
Masked protesters blocked roads, torched cars and buildings, and attacked a bus, a police car and other property. Police deployed water cannons during the disorder. Two officers were injured, and reporting said more than two dozen people were displaced while at least a dozen police officers were hurt overall as the violence escalated through parts of Northern Ireland.
The anti-racism rally in Belfast was a direct answer to that disorder and to the atmosphere around it. UK leaders had urged calm, while Northern Ireland officials condemned far-right online agitators for stoking racial tension after the stabbing allegations spread. The crowd’s chant, “Nazi scum off our streets,” captured both the fury at the rioters and the wider public rejection of attacks carried out in the name of anti-immigrant anger.
The contrast matters for Belfast’s social cohesion. The city’s streets saw a rapid chain of events: a violent assault on June 8, a court case involving the Sudanese suspect, then scenes of fires, evacuations and police deployment. But the mass turnout on Saturday also showed that many residents were not willing to let rumor, blame or political provocation define the response. For police, the challenge now is not only public order after the rioting, but also rebuilding trust in communities where fear was used as fuel.
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