Patriot Platform Deploys 200-500 Masked Men in Dover Protest as UK Police Review Balaclava Powers
Updated
Updated · bbc.co.uk · Sep 11
Patriot Platform Deploys 200-500 Masked Men in Dover Protest as UK Police Review Balaclava Powers
3 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Sep 11
Summary
Between 200 and 500 Patriot Platform activists used lorries, balaclavas and tight formations to block roads around Dover port in a coordinated anti-immigration protest that residents said felt militarised.
Danny Thomas, the group's founder, had urged supporters to be "smarter" than earlier hard-right marches—avoiding direct clashes while creating disruption, then leaving before police could fully respond.
A second protest in Portsmouth followed within a day, where activists tried to block coaches collecting migrants, showing the Dover tactics could be repeated quickly through Thomas's social media network.
Shabana Mahmood met senior police on Thursday and pressed them to use existing powers against face coverings, saying the black clothing and balaclavas created fear and marked these protests out from others.
The new group, registered in May, is also trying to turn street mobilisation into a right-wing voting bloc; Thomas says it is raising about £5,000 a month, with roughly £9,000 collected this month on a US Christian crowdfunding platform.