11-02-23, 06:38
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#18
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re: 60 Migrants Inc,Newborn & 12 Children Dead After Boat Falls Apart Near Italy
Knowsley: Three Arrested After Protest at Merseyside Asylum Seeker Hotel
Three people have been arrested on suspicion of violent disorder following clashes outside a hotel providing refuge for asylum seekers on Merseyside.
BBC 11 FEB 2023
A burnt out police van
Crowds of people around on a street looking towards a fire in the distance
Videos posted on social media showed crowds gathered near the Suites Hotel in Knowsley and a police van on fire.
Merseyside Police said officers had been dealing with what they described as an "initially peaceful protest".
The force said missiles had been thrown but there were no reports of injuries.
The Suites Hotel is located in the Ribblers Lane area of Knowsley and the protest is believed to have been sparked by a video on social media which was filmed near the hotel.
Assistant Chief Constable Paul White said the incident was "completely unacceptable" and put "those present, our officers and the wider community in danger".
"For officers and police vehicles to be damaged in the course of their duty protecting the public is disgraceful," he said.
The three people who were arrested have been taken to police stations for questioning.
Chief Constable of Merseyside Police Serena Kennedy said there would be "an increased police presence" over the weekend.
At The Scene
The husk of a police van lies burnt to the metal outside the gates of the Suites Hotel.
From a window, a man staying at the hotel peers down at the debris below. Bottles, paving stones, rocks and sticks litter the roads, the aftermath of the violence.
Police allow me through to see what happened but only when they've taken three young men they've just arrested into the back of a waiting police van which then drives off.
On the road, a piece of paper flutters by. "This is our city" it says, hinting at the issues which may be involved in this protest.
Police are continuing to review evidence of the incident, and are asking the public to contact them directly with any evidence, rather than posting it on social media.
Officers initially arrived at about 18:30 GMT, with additional officers later sent to the area.
A number of road closures have been in place on the East Lancs Road and police urged motorists to avoid the area.
Knowsley MP Sir George Howarth has called for calm, saying: "I have referred an alleged incident posted on social media, which has triggered a demonstration outside the Suites Hotel, to Merseyside Police and Knowsley Council.
"Until the police have investigated the matter, it is too soon to jump to conclusions and the effort on the part of some to inflame the situation is emphatically wrong."
Sir George added: "Those demonstrating against refugees at this protest tonight do not represent this community."
Merseyside's police commissioner Emily Spurrell, who oversees Merseyside Police and is appointed through a public vote, said the incident was "deeply shocking" and added "there is absolutely no excuses for this".
Clare Mosley, founder of refugee charity Care4Calais, told the BBC she had been part of a counter-protest in solidarity with migrants. She said she was "deeply shocked and shaken" witnessing protesters angry at migrants in the hotel, she described as "far-right", break through police lines and surround the hotel around 20:15.
There is a large police prescence in the area
The BBC is yet to establish the nature of the protest.
She claimed: "The far-right people were very organised and very violent. They got into a police riot van and they set it on fire and it blew up.
"They started fighting with all the police...
"Some of the police cars got damaged as well, a couple of the police got hurt with bricks and things.
"The problem was they couldn't get us [counter-protesters] out. We were barricaded in a car park. We were stuck there for ages, whilst the police were fighting in different areas."
She added: "My greatest concern is whether the police can keep people in this hotel safe both tonight and in the future."
KICK THEM OUT...
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