Hundreds of anti-immigration protesters took to the streets of Belfast on Tuesday night, with vehicles set ablaze and clashes erupting after police charged a Sudanese asylum seeker in connection with a brutal knife attack that left a man seriously injured.
The unrest followed the arrest and charging of a 30-year-old Sudanese national over an attack in north Belfast late Monday that left a man in his 40s with severe neck, head and facial injuries. The victim suffered significant wounds to his eyes, face and back and remains under medical care.
Footage of the stabbing spread rapidly on social media, prompting widespread public outrage and renewed debate over immigration and asylum policies in the United Kingdom. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the incident as “sickening”.
As tensions escalated, masked youths gathered across Belfast, with police deploying armoured vehicles to contain the disturbances. A bus was set on fire in east Belfast, while anti-immigration demonstrators also staged smaller protests elsewhere, including outside Parliament Square in London.
Northern Ireland Police Service Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson declared the stabbing investigation a “critical incident” and appealed for calm.
“I understand that last night’s attempted murder will leave people feeling a range of emotions, from fear to anger,” Henderson said. “I appeal for calm and the safety of all of our communities in response to this,” Reuters quoted him as saying.
Police said members of the public intervened during the attack and helped restrain the suspect before officers arrived, actions senior officers credited with saving the victim’s life.
The suspect has been charged with attempted murder, possession of a bladed article in a public place and making threats to kill. He is scheduled to appear before Belfast Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday.
Authorities said the man had been granted leave to remain in the UK in September 2023 after seeking asylum. Investigators said he travelled to Belfast from Dublin in February 2023 after arriving in Ireland from Paris.
Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said the suspect was not known to police or national security agencies before the attack.
“There is no trace of this suspect on any of our national security databases, and he was not known to the Police Service of Northern Ireland,” Boutcher said.
Police have confirmed the stabbing is not currently being treated as a terrorist incident.
Northern Ireland’s major political parties jointly condemned the attack as “horrific” and urged residents to remain calm, warning that further violence would only deepen divisions and harm local communities.
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