Far-right provocation fails in Peterborough, England as large crowd holds counter-demo

By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal

PETERBOROUGH, UK (AA) – A planned far-right riot failed in the city of Peterborough in eastern England as not a single rioter turned up Wednesday at the location circulated as a potential target.

Police took extraordinary measures to ensure the safety of the local community, workplaces and mosques.

“Everything is under control. Nothing can happen here,” said a police officer who spoke to Anadolu on condition of anonymity.

Police cars patrolled around Muslim-dominated areas, especially the Midfield area, and constantly checked the mosques in the area.

Despite all the measures by the authorities, around 1,000 local people, mostly Muslim men, gathered to ensure the safety of the community at a junction close to where the far-right mobs were supposed to gather.

Shouting “Allahu Akbar” (God is great), they were accompanied by other locals.

Speaking to Anadolu, one of the counter-protesters, Simon Brignell, said he did not think there would be a huge turnout from “fascists.”

He said Peterborough is one of the most diverse and integrated cities in the UK.

Page and Saskia, two other protesters from the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement in the city, said they joined the counter-protest to “show solidarity” against the far right.

The sizeable crowd and police waited until 10 p.m. (2100GMT) to see no far-right thug arriving to disturb the peace.

Holding an evening prayer in a shop’s car park, the Muslims later left the area after a peaceful gathering.

More than 30 locations, mostly immigration specialist law offices, had been shared by far-right social media accounts for the past two days.

On Wednesday, three far-right rioters received lengthy jail terms for various offences they committed during the riots.

“This is the swift action we’re taking,” Prime Minister Keir Starmer wrote on X, referring to the sentences.

“If you provoke violent disorder on our streets or online, you will face the full force of the law,” he added.

The UK has been rocked by turmoil for days, with violent far-right rioters spewing racist and Islamophobic vitriol targeting Muslims, minority groups and migrants.

The riots were fueled by false claims spread online that a suspect arrested for the July 29 fatal stabbing of three children in Southport was a Muslim asylum seeker.

Authorities have since identified the attacker as Axel Rudakubana, a 17-year-old born in Cardiff, Wales to Rwandan parents, but this has done little to deter the far-right mobs.