UK police brace for more far-right protests as government warns of tough response

LONDON (AP) — Several suspects arrested in violent protests that erupted after the fatal stabbing of three children in northwest England made court appearances Friday as officials braced for more clashes that Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned and blamed on “far-right hatred.”

Starmer vowed to end the mayhem and said police across the U.K. would be given more resources to stop “a breakdown in law and order on our streets.”

Demonstrations are being promoted online over the coming days in towns and cities including Sunderland, Belfast, Cardiff, Liverpool and Manchester, using phrases including “enough is enough,” “save our kids” and “stop the boats.”

John Woodcock, the British government’s adviser on political violence and disruption, said there was a “concerted and coordinated” attempt to spread the violence.

“Clearly, some of those far-right actors have got a taste for this and are trying to provoke similar in towns and cities across the U.K.,” he told the BBC.

The attack Monday on children at a Taylor Swift-themed summer holiday dance class shocked a country where knife crime is a long-standing and vexing problem, though mass stabbings are rare.

A 17-year-old, Axel Rudakubana, has been charged with murder over the attack that killed Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Bebe King, 6, in the seaside town of Southport in northwest England. He also has been charged with 10 counts of attempted murder for the eight children and two adults who were wounded.

Starmer visited Southport on Thursday for the second time this week, meeting with police, community leaders and residents and then going to the children’s hospital where many of victims were treated.

His office announced a vague support package to help the victims and bring the community closer, but the announcement did not mention how that would be accomplished or if funding was being provided.

A violent demonstration in Southport on Tuesday was followed by others around the country — fueled in part by online misinformation that said the attacker was Muslim and an immigrant. Rudakubana was born in Britain to Rwandan parents and lived close to the scene of the attack.

Suspects who are under 18 are usually not named in the U.K., but judge Andrew Menary ordered that Rudakubana could be identified, in part to stop the spread of misinformation.

Far-right demonstrators have held several violent protests, ostensibly in response to the attack, clashing with police outside a mosque in Southport on Tuesday and hurling beer cans, bottles and flares near the prime minister’s office in London the next day.

The violence has put the Muslim community on edge and hundreds of mosques across the nation are increasing security after the Southport attack, Zara Mohammed, secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, said.

At the Southport Mosque, Muslim, Jewish and Christian leaders gathered to say they were “united to defeat all forms of hatred and extremism in our country.”

Merseyside Police, which is responsible for Southport, said it had made seven arrests so far and had a team of specialists reviewing hundreds of hours of footage to identify anyone involved.

“If you took part in this disorder, you can expect to receive a knock on your door by our officers,” Detective Chief Inspector Tony Roberts said.

Police officers were pelted with bottles and eggs Wednesday in the town of Hartlepool in northeast England.

Sixteen people, so far, have been arrested in the uproar, including an 11-year-old boy accused of torching a police car. A 13-year-old boy and a woman were also arrested on suspicion of violent disorder.

Five of those arrested were held in custody after appearing in Teesside Magistrates’ Court on violent disorder charges. Two others admitted they were involved in the disorder and were bailed until sentencing next month.

Ryan Sheers, who a prosecutor said was bitten by a police dog after repeatedly trying to push through a line of officers, wept during the hearing.

Outside court, Sheers, a former McDonald's worker, denied being involved despite admitting he had done so in court.

“Didn't get involved in nothing,” Sheers said. “We didn’t smash no town up."

At a news conference Thursday, the prime minister said the street violence was “clearly driven by far-right hatred” as he announced a program enabling police to better share intelligence across agencies and move quickly to make arrests.

“This is coordinated; this is deliberate,” Starmer said. “This is not a protest that has got out of hand. It is a group of individuals who are absolutely bent on violence.”

Starmer said his so-called National Violent Disorder Program would enable police to move between communities — just as the “marauding mobs” do. Officers will harness facial recognition technology to identify culprits and use criminal behavior orders often imposed on soccer hooligans that prevent them from going to certain places or associating with one another.

Starmer put some of the blame on social media companies, though he didn’t announce any measures to address that and said there was a balance to be struck between the value they offer and the threat they can pose.

“Violent disorder, clearly whipped up online, that is also a crime. It’s happening on your premises,” he said.

Police officers stand outside a damaged butchers shop on Murray Street in Hartlepool, England, Thursday Aug. 1, 2024, following a violent protest on Wednesday evening, where demonstrators set fire to a police car and pelted officers with missiles, including glass bottles. There were scenes of violent unrest in London, Hartlepool and Manchester in the wake of the killing of three young girls in a knife attack in Southport, which social media posts had wrongly claimed was carried out by a Muslim asylum seeker who crossed the Channel in a small boat. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP)

Protesters confront police during the "Enough is Enough" protest in Whitehall, London, Wednesday July 31, 2024, following the fatal stabbing of three children at a Taylor Swift-themed summer holiday dance and yoga class on Monday in Southport. (Jordan Pettitt/PA via AP)

Police officers are deployed on the streets of Hartlepool, England, following a violent protest in the wake of the killing of three girls who were fatally stabbed in northwest England, Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP)

A police car burns as officers are deployed on the streets of Hartlepool, England, following a violent protest in the wake of the killing of three girls who were fatally stabbed in northwest England, Wednesday, July 31, 2024. Far-right groups seek to stir anger over an attack they have sought to link — without evidence — to immigrants. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP)

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a press conference at 10 Downing Street, London, England, Thursday, August 1, 2024, following clashes after the Southport stabbing. The Prime Minister says he will set a national policing unit to crack down on violent protesters after clashes with police across England on the past two nights. (Henry Nicholls/Pool Photo via AP)

This court artist drawing by Elizabeth Cook shows 17-year-old Axel Rudakubana, center, covering his face as he appeared in the dock at Liverpool Crown Court in Liverpool, England, Thursday Aug. 1, 2024. (Elizabeth Cook /PA via AP)

Protesters scuffle with police during the "Enough is Enough" protest in Whitehall, London, Wednesday July 31, 2024, following the fatal stabbing of three children at a Taylor Swift-themed summer holiday dance and yoga class on Monday in Southport. (Jordan Pettitt/PA via AP)

Protesters confront police officers during the "Enough is Enough" protest in Whitehall, London, Wednesday July 31, 2024, following the fatal stabbing of three children at a Taylor Swift-themed summer holiday dance and yoga class on Monday in Southport. (Jordan Pettitt/PA via AP)

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) — Charles Leclerc qualified on pole position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix as Max Verstappen was sixth and Lando Norris only 17th on Saturday in a session that could have a big impact on the Formula 1 title race.

Ferrari's Leclerc, who won the last race in Italy, was fastest by .321 seconds from McLaren's Oscar Piastri, and the second Ferrari of Carlos Sainz Jr. was third. Pole marked a dramatic turnaround for Leclerc, who crashed in the first practice session Friday.

“It hasn’t been an easy weekend because (of) the crash in FP1, which didn’t make me lose confidence. I knew that the pace was there," Leclerc said. "But you’ve got to build back up to speed.”

Leclerc is on pole in Baku for the fourth year running, but he has yet to win the race.

Norris was on what seemed to be a lap fast enough to progress from the first part of qualifying as one of the top 15. But he had to slow for a yellow flag that was apparently for Esteban Ocon's slow-moving Alpine. Norris' time from his first lap missed the 15th-place cutoff by .137 of a second.

“There was nothing I could do” about the yellow flag, Norris said. “Frustrating, but now we look ahead to tomorrow and see where we can maximize the result.”

Norris is second in the standings, 62 points behind Verstappen with eight races remaining.

McLaren confirmed before the race weekend that it would favor Norris over Piastri to help his title challenge, with Norris suggesting the Australian would be asked to make way for him on track in some situations.

That almost certainly won't happen Sunday with 15 places separating the teammates in qualifying. Piastri is aiming to fight for a second career win.

“Our race pace is good, but the Ferrari is certainly not slow,” he said.

Defending champion Verstappen, who hasn't won any of the last six races, seemed better in Baku but was sixth and said he'd clipped a curb at “the worst time it could have happened.” Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez was fourth, beating Verstappen in qualifying for the first time all year.

Verstappen said the Red Bull was improved from the Italian Grand Prix, where he finished sixth, but questioned whether the team's attempts to refine the setup ahead of qualifying made things worse.

"On a street circuit you need to be comfortable and confident to be able to attack corners and it is harder to do this when the car is a bit more unpredictable," he said.

George Russell was fifth for Mercedes, ahead of Verstappen, with Lewis Hamilton seventh and Fernando Alonso eighth for Aston Martin.

There was a bizarre incident in the final part of qualifying when Williams' Alex Albon stopped on his way out of the pits to remove a large piece of cooling equipment that the team left in his air intake. Albon qualified 10th and was facing an investigation from the stewards after the session.

Albon's teammate Franco Colapinto, in only his second F1 race weekend, was ninth in the best qualifying result for an Argentine driver in 42 years.

British teen Oliver Bearman, standing in at Haas for the suspended Kevin Magnussen, was 11th after recovering from a crash in the third practice Saturday morning.

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco in action during a Formula One Grand Prix practice in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco in action during a Formula One Grand Prix qualifying in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco in action during a Formula One Grand Prix qualifying in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Haas driver Oliver Bearman of the United Kingdom walks through the pit lane during the Formula One Grand Prix qualifying in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (Ali Haideric/Pool via AP)

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands enters the pit lane during the Formula One Grand Prix qualifying in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (Ali Haideric/Pool via AP)

McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain in action during a Formula One Grand Prix practice in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco in action during a Formula One Grand Prix qualifying in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)