A far right gang which allegedly posted racist abuse online, alongside pictures of them posing with guns, have been targeted by police raids.
Officers arrested a 30-year-old man yesterday in a series of raids in Shadsworth and Whitebirk in Blackburn. Two guns have also been seized.
The police operation came after a series of photos were published on Facebook. The investigation also centres on extremely offensive racist postings on the website.
The English Defence League has been branded a “disorganised rabble” after its Walsall protest descended into violence.
Police arrested 28 people as followers of the far-right group charged officers, who used shields and batons to thwart the attackers in Leicester Street.
Organisers of a rival protest set up outside the town’s New Art Gallery to highlight the borough’s proud multi-cultural heritage have attacked the EDL for failing to control its supporters.
Bulgarian xenophobic party Ataka (Attack) wants the Parliament to pass a moratorium on the construction of mosques in the country.
In a statement sent to the media, the marginal ultra-nationalist formation has reminded that Bulgaria has the highest number of mosques per capita in Europe.
Immigration Minister Chris Bowen will not block the visit of Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders, claiming Australia is robust enough to withstand his strong anti-Islamist views.
Socialist youth movement Blitz demonstrated against SIAN’s demonstration in front of the parliament building on Saturday. On one occasion, two groups attempted to confront, but police stopped them quickly and arrested four people.
The Scottish Defence League (SDL) held a static protest outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, while Unite Against Fascism organised its own counter-protest. Police said that around 60 people attended the SDL event, which lasted for around 45 minutes. The majority arrived by coach.
Meanwhile Unite Against Fascism said its march from the City Chambers on the Royal Mile to the Parliament attracted over 300 people. Police put the figure at around 250.
Police clashed with members of the English Defence League during protests in Walsall town centre today.
During speeches given by leaders of the EDL, the crowd surged towards police lines on Leicester Street. Officers with riot gear used batons and shields to hold back the demonstrators. Scores of missiles – including bricks, bottles and litter bins – were hurled at police.
At 3pm officers cleared Lichfield Street with a shields charge as members of the EDL were herded on to buses to transport them away from the town centre.
West Midlands Police said they have no power to ban a static protest and the right to protest peacefully was a sign of a healthy democracy.
A 21-year-old Rochdale man and a 16-year-old youth from Stockport have been locked up by a judge for their part in disturbances involving English Defence League supporters at the Eureka Museum in Halifax.
The Collectif contre l’Islamophobie en France reports a graffiti attack on a mosque at Vandoeuvre in north-eastern France. The word “Israel” in Hebrew has been sprayed onto the doors along with a Star of David and “LDJ” – the initials of the Ligue de défense juive (Jewish Defence League), the extreme right-wing Kahanist movement whose UK section is headed by former EDL Jewish Division leader Roberta Moore. No doubt this act of desecration would meet with her enthusiastic approval.
To accompany their coverage of the English Defence League’s harrassment of worshippers at Margate mosque, the Isle of Thanet Gazette reports on a recent EDL meeting in the Kent seaside town.