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UK Government Condemns Far-Right Protesters in Portsmouth
Confirmed
In Short: Protesters blocked roads in Portsmouth, preventing migrants from being transported for processing, according to reports.
The government in the UK has condemned the "thuggish and intimidating" behavior of far-right protesters who blocked roads in Portsmouth, preventing migrants from being transported for processing. According to reports, hundreds of protesters, some wearing balaclavas, attempted to prevent asylum seekers from being moved to a processing center in Kent. Daniel Thomas, known as Danny Tommo, was livestreaming from the scene and was reportedly involved in organizing the protest.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones expressed concern that Portsmouth should not become a "destination of choice for people traffickers." The protest followed a similar incident in Dover, where a boat carrying asylum seekers arrived. The government spokesperson stated that everyone who had arrived on the boat had left the area and was being transported for processing in the usual way.
Daniel Thomas, a far-right agitator closely linked to Tommy Robinson, was recorded telling the crowd that Portsmouth was "now ground zero" for the arrival of asylum seekers on boats from France. He said, "enough is enough" and "Dover was a dummy run." The chief executive of Hope Not Hate, Nick Lowles, noted a failure of intelligence with both protests, highlighting Thomas's history of agitating for far-right activism.
The police had to use riot shields to protect coaches carrying migrants, as protesters blocked traffic. Donna Jones, the Conservative police and crime commissioner for Hampshire, provided details of the boat's journey, stating that it left somewhere near Cherbourg in France at about 1am on Sunday morning and arrived near Portsmouth about 10 hours later.
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- Track UK's latest migration numbers - net migration, visas, asylum and small boats Protesters said they were trying to stop authorities transporting the migrants to the Manston processing centre in Kent.
- The government condemned "the intimidating and thuggish behaviour" of the protesters, many of whom were dressed in black and wore masks.
- He previously launched Operation Overlord, which planned to send far-right activists to France.