Anti-immigration tensions rise in UK after knife attack in Belfast

Anti-immigration tensions have risen in parts of the United Kingdom (UK) after a knife attack in Belfast on Monday night, with violent unrest in Northern Ireland and demonstrations in several Scottish cities on Tuesday renewing debate over migration, policing and social media's role in fueling disorder, reported Xinhua. Hundreds of protesters took to the streets in Belfast, Northern Ireland's capital, late Tuesday after footage of the attack circulated widely online. Anti-immigration protests were also held on Tuesday night in London and several Scottish cities, including Glasgow, Edinburgh, Ayr and Aberdeen. The knife attack took place late on Monday in Belfast. A man remains in a serious condition in hospital. A 30-year-old Sudanese national appeared at Belfast Magistrates' Court on Wednesday morning and was remanded in custody after being charged with attempted murder and other offenses. The communications regulator Office of Communication (Ofcom) on Wednesday warned online service providers to act against illegal content that could stir up hatred or provoke violence, following the unrest in Belfast after a knife attack. In an open letter, Ofcom said some of the unrest appeared to have been incited online and involved racially motivated violence, arson attacks on homes and vehicles, and attacks against police. Ofcom said it was closely monitoring the situation in Northern Ireland, including the role of content hosted on regulated services, and was contacting individual providers where it believed there were specific risks related to illegal content. Speaking in parliament on Wednesday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the knife attack raised serious questions, but the acts of violence and arson that followed are totally unjustified. Starmer said political leaders were united in calling for calm and determined to restore order. The family of the injured man also appealed for calm. In a statement, the family said many migrants made a valuable contribution to the country and urged people not to use the attack to divide communities or fuel hostility.