Man 'targeting Muslim couple' with hedge trimmer in UK arrested, say police

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) – A man in his 30s was arrested in Manchester after allegedly chasing a Muslim couple with a hedge trimmer, police said on Wednesday.

A video circulated on social media on Tuesday shows a man chasing a couple with a hedge trimmer while being filmed in Manchester.

Documenting Oppression Against Muslims (DOAM) groups shared the video, saying a far-right thug targeted a Muslim couple.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said in a statement on Wednesday that the suspect in his 30s was arrested on Tuesday night "on suspicion of affray."

He is still in police custody, the GMP added.

The incident took place at a time when the UK has been in 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 the 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 teenager born in Cardiff to Rwandan parents, but this has done little to deter far-right mobs.