Anti-immigration protests in Belfast turn violent after knife attack; buildings and vehicles set ablaze

Residents of buildings that caught fire had to be evacuated. Eemran, an engineer of Indian origin who has lived in Belfast for just over a year, told AFP that more people arrived and began throwing petrol bombs. "More and more people started coming, they started throwing petrol bombs. Suddenly the fire started going … we had smoke inside the building … fire people came in and they said 'go down'," Eemran said, describing the moments when firefighters entered and brought residents outside.

Eyewitness accounts from residents

Camila, a 36-year-old Chilean woman who moved to Belfast one month ago, described the situation as frightening. "I understand the people's rage but also there are ways of discussing these things more peacefully," she said, adding that she is not used to such scenes.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned both the knife attack and the subsequent violence. "Ich habe absolut keine Toleranz für abscheuliche Szenen der Gewalt wie diese auf unseren Straßen," Starmer said, describing the attack in Belfast as "abscheulich" and calling for calm.

Political reaction and calls for calm

Northern Ireland's First Minister Michelle O'Neill sharply criticised the protesters. Writing on X, she said: "Gruppen maskierter Männer, die Familien aus ihren Häusern vertreiben, indem sie diese niederbrennen - das ist nichts anderes als widerliche Feigheit." She called for calm and urged residents to stay indoors during the disturbances.

The Belfast protests were not isolated. Media reports indicated that demonstrations also took place in other British cities, including Southampton, the previous week. In Southampton, riots had followed a fatal knife attack on a student, a pattern that has heightened tensions over immigration and public safety across the United Kingdom.

Broader unrest across UK cities

Police in Belfast deployed significant resources to disperse the crowds and secure the affected areas. The fires prompted a major emergency response, with firefighters rescuing residents from burning houses. No further casualties from the protests were immediately reported, though authorities warned that the situation remained volatile into Wednesday.

The events have put the UK government under pressure to address both knife crime and the social media dissemination of attack footage. Starmer's office said the prime minister was receiving regular updates, and officials signalled that further measures could be considered if violence spread to other cities.