Far-right British group’s anti-Islam march in Manchester sparks counter-protests

An anti-Islam rally organized by the far-right Britain First group has been met with a larger antifascist counter-protest, causing a tense city center standoff in Manchester, England.

Several skirmishes and fights broke out in the city center as supporters of the far-right group clashed with antifascist campaigners and passers-by defending anti-racism.

Police officers formed a line between the Britain First advocates and opposing Stand Up to Racism Manchester demonstrators, preventing the skirmishes from further escalating and spreading beyond the city center.

Britain First supporters waved Union Jack flags at the rally, chanting “send them back” in reference to the far-right group’s pursuit of mass deportation and removal of migrants and Muslims from the UK.

They also repeated a series of anti-immigration slogans, expressing derisive remarks about British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

“Leftie scum,” one of the supporting members of Britain First shouted at three young counter-protesters facing the crowd.

A 10-hour dispersal order was put in place by police deployed across the city center.

The order gave police officers extra powers to remove anyone suspected of causing anti-social behavior.

As of 3 pm local time, Greater Manchester Police said six people had been arrested on suspicion of disrupting public order, breach of peace, assault on an emergency worker, and breach of dispersal notice.

Meanwhile, a much larger counter-protest was also planned for midday on Saturday.

Antifascist protesters carried anti-racist banners while waving an array of flags, including the Palestinian flag. A 20-year-old student named Ruby was one of the participants at the antifascist rally. She said taking part in the rally was a “no-brainer.”

The South Londoner said she took a five-hour coach ride to come to Manchester to show her solidarity with the counter-protesters. However, she asked that her surname not be published, fearing repercussions from the far-right group members for taking part in the rally.

Ruby said her grandparents were from Montserrat, a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean.

She said her grandparents told her that they are now witnessing a return to the levels of racism they experienced when they first came to Britain decades ago.

They are now feeling as unwelcome as they did in the 1950s, Ruby cited her grandparents as saying.

Zionist funding of UK far right riots revealed

The UK riots appear to have stopped, however, questions are being asked about their root cause, which has been ascribed to far-right politicians.

Llowelyn, 16, a counter-protester from Wales, whose father hailed from British Guyana, had the same impression about the increase in racism.

She said her aged father was receiving more verbal abuse based on his race in the past few years than at any other stage in his life.

A counter-protester named Audrey, who is a teacher, said the UK police always took the side of the far-right crowd during skirmishes with the left.

She said she had been pushed away by law enforcement officers after being initially shoved by a Britain First protester.

She insisted the UK police policy “protected” the far-right.

“These guys [far-right agitators] try and intimidate … minorities because they think they are a master race,” said John, another counter-protester from Wales. “They come here to cause a ruckus and make money of it online, but I come here to protect the left.”

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