Mirvis and Board offer messages of solidarity to Southport mosque attacked by far-right yobs
Chief Rabbi says Southport mosque was 'shamefully' targeted after appalling murders of young children were falsely blamed on Muslims
Lee Harpin is the Jewish News's political editor
Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis and the Board of Deputies have issued statements of solidarity with a mosque in Southport after far-right yobs attacked the building with bricks in response to murder of three children.
More than 200 extremists clashed with police outside the Southport Islamic Society Mosque on St Luke’s Road on Tuesday night in response to the mass stabbing attack on Monday that left three children dead and others seriously injured.
It followed false rumours which rapidly circulated online suggesting the 17 year-old boy, accused of murder at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class was a Muslim immigrant and resulted in more than 50 police officers being injured.
Rabbi Mirvis said:”Our nation is united in mourning the unspeakable murder of innocent children in Southport. Those who saw in this atrocity an opportunity to stoke hatred and division, have succeeded only in compounding the grief of a peaceful community.
“Today, we have seen the courage and integrity of that community, as volunteers assembled to repair the damage caused by rioters.
“It has also reached out a hand of solidarity to the Southport Mosque, which was so shamefully targeted in an act of racist violence, which must have no place in modern Britain. May the injured be granted a swift and complete recovery and may the memory of young Alice, Bebe, and Elsie be a blessing.”
Keir Starmer was meeting senior police leaders in Downing Street on Thursday afternoon after a second night of violent unrest across England.
The PM is expected to stress to police chiefs that officers should use “the full force of the law” against those who perpetrate violence and “sow hatred”.
Protests were staged under the banner Enough is Enough and demonstrators chanted “We want our country back” and “Oh Tommy Robinson”, along with anti-Islam messages.
Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform UK, was criticised for appearing to give credence to conspiracy theories about the attack. In a video on Tuesday he questioned “whether the truth is being withheld from us”.
Violent protests also took place in London, Hartlepool, and other areas of the country on Wednesday evening.
The Board of Deputies also condemned the riot outside the mosque for “inciting communal tensions”.In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Board of Deputies (BoD) said it “unreservedly condemns the attack on the Southport Mosque, the targeting of its Muslim worshippers, and the harming of police officers. There can be absolutely no place for this kind of violence or agitation aimed at inciting communal tension.”
A 17-year-old boy accused of murdering three girls appeared in court on Thursday.
The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons due to his age, is accused of three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and one count of possession of a bladed article.Alice Dasilva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, were fatally stabbed on Monday when a knifeman entered the dance class on Hart Street in Southport, Merseyside.
The boy is accused of using a kitchen knife to stab to death the three girls.
The court heard that he attempted to murder eight other children and two adults, Leanne Lucas and John Hayes.
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