“Quick» convictions, special police deployment British Prime Minister Keir Starmer today promised a strong response to end the far-right violence that spread across Britain over the weekend.

A week after a knife attack that killed three little girls in north-west England and amid speculation about the suspect’s origins, the country is facing its worst incidents in 13 years.

Hundreds of arrests have taken place in the wake of violent unrest in recent days: looting of hotels hosting asylum seekers, attacks on mosques, looting of shops.

After the end of a meeting to deal with the crisis in Downing Streetthe head of the Labor government announced the mobilization of a “standing army” of specialist police to deal with the clashes, without going into details.

“Whatever their motive, this is not protest, it is outright violence and we will not tolerate attacks against mosques or against our Muslim communitiesStarmer said today.

“The law will be enforced in full force against those identified as having participated».

In power for a month, Keir Starmer has stressed that his “absolute” priority is to put an end to the riots and that “criminal sanctions will be swift”, while “ensuring that the roads are safe for citizens”. after the weekend episodes.

As of yesterday evening he had warned that the riots “they will regret it” who participated in the episodes of the last few days.

The incidents broke out in Southport the day after the knife attack in that city, amid unconfirmed reports, later partially denied, about the religion and background of the 17-year-old suspect, Axel Rudakubana, who is facing prosecution for homicides and attempted homicides. Officially, all that has been known is that he was born in Wales, with the media confirming that his parents are from Rwanda.

After many days of clashes especially in Liverpool (Northwest), Belfast (Northern Ireland) or even Bristol (Southwest), these gatherings, with a central slogan “Enough is enough” as a reference to the arrival in Britain of migrants crossing the English Channel in lifeboats, was marked by attacks on two hotels hosting asylum seekers.

In Rotherham (north), more than 700 people, according to police, took part in the protests, smashing shop windows and setting fires, with some shouting slogans such as “Banish them».

Twelve officers were injured and six people were arrested, with South Yorkshire Police’s Deputy Chief Constable Lindsey Butterfield saying the number of arrests would increase “significantly over the next few days”.

In Tamworth, near Birmingham (central), a hotel was targeted by protesters, who “smashed windows, set fire and attacked police”, according to the officer.

The country has not seen such an upsurge in violence since 2011, following the death of a teenager, Mark Duggan, who was killed by police in north London.

According to the count made by the British media, more than 400 people have been arrested in the past week. Many of them remained in custody after being brought before the investigative authorities.

“These criminals will pay the priceHome Secretary Yvette Cooper pledged to the BBC.

“We have been assured that the courts are ready, additional prosecutors will be available».