Southport Stabbings: How Misinformation Fueled Anti-Immigration Protests, Riots In The UK

On July 29, a 17-year-old boy went on a stabbing attack in the city of Southport. Three children - Bebe King (6), Elsie Dot Stancombe (7) and Alice Dasilva Aguiar (9) were killed in the attack.

Eight other children along with the two adults who protected them were injured in the attack.

UK Witnesses Most Widespread Riots Since 2011

The riots sparked by misinformation about the Southport stabbing suspect are the biggest the UK has seen since 2011. 13 years ago, mass protests and riots broke out across Britain after the killing of Mark Duggan, a local Black man who was shot dead by police.

In Liverpool, two police officers were taken to the hospital over suspected broken jaws and noses due to the clashes in the city. As per Merseyside Police, people set off fire extinguishers and "threw various items including bricks and bottles at officers".

In Bristol, "violent disorder" took over after protestors outnumbered police officials. Sky News reported that several clashes also broke out between far-right and counter-protestors.

Similar demonstrations and violence was also seen in Nottingham, Leeds, Blackpool, Hull, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Manchester and Belfast.

Newly elected Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer condemned the violence against police officials and called out the far-right for spreading false information on social media.

In a televised address, the UK PM expressed full support for the police to "take action against extremists on our streets who are attacking police officers, disrupting local businesses and attempting to sow hate by intimidating communities."

"The right to freedom of expression and the violent disorder we have seen are two very different things," Sir Starmer saod, adding that "there is no excuse for violence of any kind".

"Let me also say to large social media companies and those who run them: Violent disorder, clearly whipped up online, that is also a crime, it’s happening on your premises, and the law must be upheld everywhere,” the UK PM added further.

How Misinformation Sparked The Riots

Following the stabbings at a Taylor Swift-themed dance workshop in Southport, a 17-year-old male was arrested by Merseyside Police at the scene of the attack.

Amid the speculations regarding the identity of the attacker, social media posts claiming the attacker was a Muslim immigrant named “Ali al-Shakati" emerged and spread like wildfire.

The false information regarding the 17-year-old's identity soon led to mass riots in several cities as protestors clashed with police officials. The social media posts claimed the attacker was an immigrant from Syria and sparked the anti-immigration stance of the protests.

However, it was also learnt that this misinformation was fueled by far-right parties such as Reform UK led by Nigel Farage.

While several far-right activists and supporters were part of the initial riots, MPs such as Farage also took part in the social media storm. Farage posted a minute-long video of X and questioned if the police were telling the truth after ruling out the stabbings as a "terror-related incident".

The riots have left several police officials injured as protestors hurled bricks, stones and bottles at them. Due to the violent reaction, for the first time in a long time, a judge lifted the restriction of not naming minors and released the identity of the 17-year-old attacker to combat the false information.

The 17-year-old attacker has been identified as Axel Muganwa Rudakubana who was born and raised in Cardiff to Rwandan parents. The attacker has been charged with three counts of murder as well as 10 counts of attempted murder.