The National Times - Appeals for calm after 'sickening' Belfast stabbing spurs protest calls

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) vowed to increase its presence on the UK province's streets after footage of Monday night's incident shared online drew shock, condemnation and demands for immediate demonstrations on Tuesday evening.

Tensions have already been heightened in Britain following violent skirmishes last week in Southampton, southern England, over the police handling of the murder of a young white student stabbed to death by a British Sikh man.

The video from Belfast shows a man straddling another man lying in a street and slashing him several times in the head and neck with a knife, in what far-right figures claimed was an attempted beheading.

Several people can then be seen intervening and tackling the perpetrator, as police arrive.

The PSNI said the man arrested on suspicion of attempted murder was in his 30s, Sudanese and in the UK legally, after initially disclosing he was believed to be Somali.

Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson said the force had "no information to suggest that this was a terrorist-related incident," stressing the investigation was still in its infancy.

The victim, a man in his 40s, "was taken to hospital with significant injuries to his eyes and serious slash wound injuries to his back and face," he told a press briefing.

Officers recovered what is believed to be a kitchen knife at the scene, Henderson confirmed.

A 31-year-old housewife and mother-of-one who lives nearby said the incident had terrified the neighbourhood.

"We're just living in fear now," she told AFP.

- 'Fear to anger' -

Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the incident "horrific" and "sickening" in a post on X.

The leaders of Northern Ireland's five main political parties issued a joint statement condemning the incident, saying "there is no place in our society for this kind of brutality".

"We call for calm and for space to allow justice to take its course," it added.

The leaders and police urged people not to share the video, noting its "graphic nature would only serve to retraumatise those involved".

But numerous social media accounts linked to so-called "patriots" were sharing the footage, urging people to "protest against mass immigration into their communities" -- a year after racially-motivated riots rocked Northern Ireland.

Henderson said he understood people were "feeling a range of emotions, from fear to anger".

"Our officers have a role to facilitate and accommodate peaceful protest," he said, while cautioning against a repeat of widespread anti-immigrant rioting last June.

"No one needs to see a repeat of this. This only causes damage to local communities ... so I appeal for calm and the safety of all of our communities."

- 'Implications' -

Northern Irish MP Gavin Robinson, from the pro-UK Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), claimed in parliament the suspect was in the UK on a five-year visa.

Henderson told reporters the suspect, who lived near the scene of the attack, had entered the UK from Ireland to the south, after first arriving in Dublin.

UK authorities were yet to confirm his immigration status.

"What occurred last night will have profound implications for community cohesion in this country," Robinson said, urging the government to "recognise that uncontrolled immigration needs to end".

Immigration has become a hot button issue in UK politics, and helped fuel the rise of the far-right Reform UK party in the polls.

Leading far-right figures in the UK, including anti-immigration activist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, who is also known as Tommy Robinson, were among those circulating the attack footage.

Some accounts posted numerous locations where protests were planned late Tuesday, noting businesses had been urged to close from 5:30 pm (1630 GMT).

Northern Ireland saw more than a week of riots last June, sparked by two Romanian teenagers charged with the alleged attempted rape of a schoolgirl in Ballymena, northwest of Belfast.

The charges were later dropped "on evidential grounds".

Mainland Britain also saw violent disorder at anti-immigration protests last year, primarily targeting hotels used to house asylum seekers.

N.Roberts--TNT