Riots broke out in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, following the court appearance of two teenagers charged with attempted rape. The alleged assault, involving a Romanian translator, triggered an outcry and tapped into existing anti-immigrant sentiments.
The riots are linked to a broader anti-immigrant movement and exploited existing social and economic issues such as a housing shortage and cost of living crisis.
While immigration in Northern Ireland has increased, the percentage remains relatively low compared to other European countries. Far-right groups and social media influencers amplified the narrative surrounding the alleged assault, inciting the violence.
Broken windows were covered with plywood on Clonavon Terrace in Ballymena on Wednesday afternoon, and the singed end of a curtain blew lazily out of a window. In another window, the wiry end of a charred bed frame was just visible, the sign of an attempted arson attack.
For two nights, this street in Northern Ireland has been the site of rioting, with homes, businesses and vehicles attacked in what the police have described as “hate-fueled acts and mob rule.” Further unrest broke out in Ballymena on Wednesday night, while in Larne, a town on the east coast, masked rioters attacked a leisure center that had provided emergency shelter for families fleeing Ballymena. The local authorities told the BBC in a statement later that the families had all been safely relocated.
The outbreak of violence began after two 14-year-old boys appeared in a local court on Monday charged with attempted oral rape of a girl on Clonavon Terrace on Saturday night. The boys spoke through a Romanian translator, the BBC reported, and both denied the charges through their lawyer.
The alleged assault set off an outcry in Ballymena, a town of about 31,000 people, and tapped into a broader anti-immigrant movement that has resulted in several outbreaks of violence in recent years. Far-right groups and influencers on social media amplified news of the assault case and celebrated the ensuing riots.
Northern Ireland has seen increased immigration in recent years, with the percentage of the population born outside of the United Kingdom rising from 6.5 percent in 2011 to 8.6 percent in 2021, according to the most recent census data. But the number of immigrants is still relatively low compared with many other countries in Europe, and emigration is high. Experts say that far-right activists have exploited a housing shortage and an ongoing cost of living crisis to incite violence against asylum seekers and other migrants.
Police officers came under “sustained attack” on Tuesday night, with Molotov cocktails, bricks and fireworks, according to a statement from the Police Service of Northern Ireland, and 17 officers were injured.
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