Far-Right Protesters Block Portsmouth Roads Over 140 Asylum Seekers as Police End Standoff at 3am
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Sep 7
Far-Right Protesters Block Portsmouth Roads Over 140 Asylum Seekers as Police End Standoff at 3am
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Sep 7
Summary
Hundreds of masked far-right activists blocked roads in Portsmouth for hours after a boat carrying 140 asylum seekers was brought ashore, trying to stop coaches taking them to the Manston processing centre.
Police ended the protest around 3am with a dispersal order and threats of arrest after officers clashed with demonstrators; two police car windscreens were smashed and protesters briefly broke through a cordon.
The boat was intercepted off the Hampshire coast after a major rescue response involving lifeboats, a helicopter and an aircraft — an unusual arrival point for a large asylum-seeker vessel, which are usually brought to Dover.
The government condemned the "thuggish" disorder, while Daniel Thomas, a former Tommy Robinson associate, used a livestream to urge supporters to join what became the second major anti-migrant protest of the weekend after Dover.
The unrest came even as small-boat crossings are down more than 40% this year; ministers say 48,000 attempts have been prevented and a new France deal will put 40% more officers on beaches.