Ongoing unrest between Hindu and Muslim communities in Leicester city could spread all over Britain. Unfounded rumours and false news on social media are outbursting tension all over Britain.
A crowd of Muslim demonstrators reportedly threw fireworks and missiles in the direction of police in the industrial town of Smethwick on Tuesday night.
The disturbance is seen being spread across the Midlands.
On Wednesday, faith leaders warned that current unrest, apparently fuelled by disinformation on social media, “will spread all over Britain”.
This Weekend Leicester Police made 47 arrests for offences including making threats to kill, possessing a firearm and affray. Some linked the sectarian violence to a “country-based dispute” after India beat Pakistan in a cricket match in Dubai on August 28. Others said false claims on social media triggered the clashes.
Massive disturbance outbursts on the Weekend when a crowd of young men from Muslim and Hindu communities erupted in Smethwick and gathered outside Durga Bhawan Temple.
Video footage showed the masked and hooded men shouting “Allahu akbar”, with dozens of officers deployed to the area in riot gear in reaction.
No injuries were noted, and an 18-year-old has since been arrested on doubt of having a knife.
On Wednesday afternoon, there continued to be a significant police presence outside the mosque in anticipation of further trouble, with six police vans and two patrol cars placed strategically around its perimeter.
Police later searched 10-15 strong groups of youths around the Durga Bhagwan Hindu centre, seizing fireworks and other suspicious objects from several individuals, in what officers described as a “search and disperse” operation.
Other officers also used vehicle number plate recognition technology to spot cars that may have been in the vicinity of the centre during Tuesday evening’s disturbances.
West Midlands Police have said they will continue monitoring the situation locally and globally.
