Category Archives: United Kingdom

Savage acid attack in the name of honour

Posted on by

From The Daily Mail U.K.

Acid attack victim ‘targeted over affair with woman he met on Facebook’

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 8:46 AM on 14th April 2010

A Facebook user was disfigured in a revenge-fuelled acid attack over his intimate relationship with a married woman he met online, a court heard today.

Awais Akram, 25, looked like a ‘cross between a zombie from a horror movie and the Incredible Hulk’ after the assault in July last year, jurors were told.

Mr Akram was left burned and bleeding from his nose and eyes and with flesh hanging off his body, prosecutor David Markham said.

A court artist's impression of, from left, Mohammed Vakas, Mohammed Adeel and a 17-year-old defendant who cannot be identified, appearing at the Old Bailey‘Acid attack’: A court artist’s impression of, from left, Mohammed Vakas, Mohammed Adeel and a 17-year-old defendant who cannot be identified, appearing at the Old Bailey

A ‘high pitched scream rang out’ as he was set upon by a group of men in the early hours of the morning in Leytonstone, east London, the Old Bailey heard. Continue Reading →

Mulsim shoe tossing sanctioned as cultural ‘symbolic’ gesture

Posted on by

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3644/3427824987_e0c07ae8ef.jpg

From The Telegraph U.K.

Muslim protesters ‘will be allowed to throw their shoes’

The Metropolitan Police has quietly sanctioned the throwing of shoes by Muslim protesters on the grounds that it is “a symbolic” political gesture rather than a criminal act of violence.

Published: 7:30AM BST 12 Apr 2010

The ruling emerged after a judge in the case of Aquib Salim, 21, a student who threw a shoe during last year’s Gaza protests in London dismissed a charge of violent disorder for the act.

His comments, at Isleworth Crown Court, mean that many of the 70 mainly Muslim protesters charged with violent disorder following the protests outside the Israeli embassy could also escape prosecution if they threw shoes rather than other missiles.

It has since been confirmed by the Crown Prosecution Service that the judge’s decision was based partly on guidance issued by police in 2008 shortly after an Iraqi journalist threw a shoe at George Bush during a press conference in Baghdad.

It has led to an increase in the practice, with protesters hurling shoes at Downing Street and at the US consulate in Edinburgh during the Gaza protests.

Chris Holt, Salim’s solicitor, said his client was likely to escape with a suspended sentence for another offence of throwing a stick at police – an offence to which he pleaded guilty.

“The court accepted that the earlier shoe-throwing incident was simply a ritual form of protest and therefore not a criminal act of violence,” he said.

The form of protest is based on the Muslim belief that shoes and particularly their soles are unclean.

Lindsey German, of the Stop the War coalition which has led a series of protests against the Iraq and Afghan wars, said the group sought advice from police on shoe-throwing for a protest outside Downing Street after the Baghdad protest.

“They said that was OK and there was a facility allowed for people to bring old pairs of shoes. Afterwards, they joked that they didn’t realise we were going to throw the shoes so hard,” she told The Sunday Times.


NHS sharia compliant; Muslims exempt from hygeine rules in hospitals

Posted on by

From The Telegraph U.K.

Muslim staff escape NHS hygiene rule

Muslim doctors and nurses are to be allowed to opt out of strict hygiene rules introduced by the NHS to restrict the spread of hospital superbugs.

Published: 12:30AM BST 11 Apr 2010

Muslim doctors and nurses are to be allowed to opt out of strict hygiene rules introduced by the NHS to restrict teh spread of hospital superbugs.

Photo: MARTIN POPE

Female staff who follow the Islamic faith will be allowed to cover their arms to preserve their modesty despite earlier guidance that all staff should be “bare below the elbow”.

The Department of Health has also relaxed rules prohibiting jewellery so that Sikh members of staff can wear bangles linked with their faith, providing they are pushed up the arm while the medic treats a patient.

The Mail on Sunday reported the change had been made after female Muslims objected to being required to expose their arm below the elbow under guidance introduced by Alan Johnson when he was health secretary in 2007. Continue Reading →

UK: PRINCE CHARLES’ FAVORITE ISLAMIC CHARITY SENDS FUNDS TO HAMAS

Posted on by
Da Prince: I don’t know how that could be
since Islam is the religion of peace? Pip pip and cheerio!

UK: Islamic charity praised by Prince Charles and Gordon Brown funnelled nearly $850,000 to Hamas and other jihad groups

Spencer: Not so easy to tell who is a “moderate” and who is an “extremist,” is it, Gordon? Now, why is that? More on this story. “Muslim Aid: the Hamas connection,” by Andrew Gilligan in The Telegraph, April 7 (thanks to Weasel Zippers):
Here is the full text of the article which appeared in The Sunday Telegraph last month, not previously published online:

Muslim Aid: the Hamas connection

A CHARITY praised last week by Gordon Brown and the Prince of Wales has channelled hundreds of thousands of pounds to groups linked to Hamas, the banned terrorist organisation, according to security sources.The Prime Minister and the heir to the throne personally praised Muslim Aid, whose own accounts show it has paid at least £325,000 to the Islamic University of Gaza, where leading Hamas figures teach, and £13,998 to the al-Ihsan Charitable Society, designated by the US government as a “sponsor of terrorism” and a front for the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist group.

Security sources also claim that Muslim Aid has helped channel a further £210,600 to six other organisations in the Gaza Strip since July 2009, all of which they say are linked to Hamas.

Muslim Aid is banned from the West Bank by the Israeli government, which says it is a member of the Union of Good, an alliance of charities that raise money for Hamas. Hamas is banned throughout the EU as a designated terrorist organisation.

In a video address to Muslim Aid’s 25th anniversary dinner on Wednesday, Mr Brown praised the charity’s “valuable work” and said: “I wish Muslim Aid and its passionate and committed staff and supporters the very best for another 25 years of achievement.” […]

The Prince sent a message saying that “our country is incredibly fortunate to be able to count on organisations like Muslim Aid, who bring not only help, but hope to those most in need”.

Muslim Aid, based at the hardline East London Mosque, has close links to the Islamic Forum of Europe (IFE), a fundamentalist Muslim group based in the same offices.

Muslim Aid raised more than £24 million last year and has been given at least £830,000 of public money. It claims to serve humanity “regardless of political affiliation” and only supports lawful organisations.

However, one foreign security source said: “We are opening our eyes on them. In the past they were supporting the outer rim of Hamas societies in Gaza. Now they are supporting the core.”…

This week’s “Tales from the ‘Freedom’ files”

Posted on by

This week’s stories remind us once again of how ‘old fashioned’, rational thought is being replaced by ‘progressive’, irrational ideology. The Loony Left in its mission to create a better, more thoughtful world continues to cast aside what they consider the useless notions of public consultation, debate and majority consent in favour of their gentler, wiser, dictatorial approach. Initially we at vladtepesblog were reluctant to post these stories, as we felt they may provide more data for the social engineers of our cities to expand their role of government interference in our personal choices and anything else enjoyable. Quickly concluding they will rail on regardless, we got over it. Enjoy.

#1 From Finland. (Telegraph)  Finnish Postal Service to Open Mail, Send Scanned e-Mail Copies. In a bid to both reduce CO2 emissions and the present number of postmen, Finland will begin opening household mail. Intimate love letters, payslips, overdue bills and personal messages will not be spared under the new voluntary, controversial scheme. Itella, the state owned company which runs the Nordic country’s postal system insists the highly automated process of converting letters to electronic documents will be conducted under ‘special secured premises’ where staff are bound by strict confidentiality conditions. Director at Itella Tommi Tikka, likens the move to web banking. But others vehemently disagree, comparing the initiative to what the KGB did in it’s time in the Soviet Union and the Stasi in East Germany. But Finns who long for the tactile touch and scent of real stationary need not worry; once their mail has been opened and scanned, it will be returned to it’s envelope(s) and delivered in normal fashion with the postman delivering only twice per week.

#2 From The U.K. (Telegraph) Teachers Ordered To Smile at Students. Teachers at Buile Hill Visual Arts College in Salford received a memo from a senior staff teacher telling them to begin each school day with a smile and to avoid making students ‘bored’ by setting words that are either too hard or too easy. The demand is part and parcel of a broader government initiative listing pupil entitlements and issues arising from “student voice discussions” giving children more power in respect of their schooling. iPhones have been issued to some students at a secondary school in Kent enabling them to instantly report on teachers. In one instance, a candidate for a teaching position was asked during an interview by a student panel to sing Michael Jackson’s Bad and after refusing to do so, was not offered the job. The most recent episode involved a head teacher who was forced out of her new role after a Facebook campaign by pupils angry at her appointment. Teachers are now being told, “Don’t be surprised if you are asked to explain your actions if you are found in violation of the agreed expectations”.

#3 From Canada. (CBC News)  Smoking Ban Floats at Vancouver’s Beaches, Parks. Keeping in line with Canada’s compulsion for bans, the Vancouver Park Board is considering outlawing smoking at beaches, parks and playgrounds. Smoking is already banned in all public buildings, bus shelters and near open windows and entrances in British Columbia. In an online survey conducted last year, over 600 people responded with 90% in favor of some type of smoking restriction in parks and on beaches. Park Board commissioner Raj Hundal said a total ban is one option up for discussion at a board meeting to be held April 19. He added ” I think the public is demanding we look at the issue. Whether it will be an outright ban or a modified version of the (existing) ban, we owe it to the public to examine the issue and make a decision from there”. Neighboring North Vancouver, White Rock and West Vancouver already have smoking restrictions at beaches and parks.

#4 From Denmark. (Reuters)  Solidarity Strike for Suds at Carlsberg. Warehouse and driver staff at the Danish brewery Carlsberg halted work for a second day Thursday protesting a company decision which would limit beer drinking to lunch breaks. In response to the introduction of new rules for employees on beer drinking at work and seeing refrigerators emptied of pints, over 800 workers walked off the job in protest with other staff striking in sympathy. Drivers retain an old right to 3 beers per day outside lunch hours and warehouse workers claimed the same right. Jens Bekke, spokesman at the world no.4 brewer said there would be no shipments from Copenhagen with delays in the rest of the country. The financial effect of the strike is set to be minor.

The strike in Denmark followed the company's April 1 decision to introduce new rules for employees on beer drinking at work. Suzanne Plunkett/Bloomberg News

*** and the story we almost forgot…..***

From The U.K. (Telegraph)  BNP Teachers Should Be Banned. Activists from the National Union of Teachers (NUT) has said that members of the British National Party should be banned from the classroom. A  motion to the conference called for ‘united action’ against the BNP and other groups such as the English Defence League with an amendment to the resolution demanding an all-out ban.

The comment follows the publication of a government review which said there was no justification for banning teachers from joining extremist organizations. BNP members are already banned from working as prison officers and activists insist the same ban be applied to the education service. Jean Roberts a delegate from Hammersmith and Fulham, west London said that although she opposes BNP’s views and that any teacher who promotes racist views should be barred from the classroom, she doesn’t agree that the state should bar teachers from joining any presently legal political party. “ To remove such a basic civil right, the right of association, something trade unionists hold precious, is in my view a grossly disproportionate response” she said.

BNP teachers 'should be banned'

A motion to the conference called for united action to oppose the BNP and other groups such as the English Defence League Photo: John Robertson

Responding, BNP communications officer Paul Golding said “ It’s a dangerous road to go down, once you start banning political beliefs. Isn’t that the sort of thing always lambasted by democratic politicians, banning people based on (their) political beliefs?”.

‘mosques’ used on UK firing range, Muslims outraged, demand apology

Posted on by

From The Daily Mail

Muslim fury as Army uses ‘mosques’ on UK firing range

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 12:24 PM on 08th April 2010

Muslim groups are demanding an apology from the British Army after it emerged that models of mosques are being erected on military firing ranges.

The chairman of the Bradford Council for Mosques (BMC) has called for the cut-outs to be removed immediately.

Seven replica mosques were erected on a range at Bellerby, Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire to prepare soldiers for combat in Afghanistan.

Seven replica mosques were erected on a range at Bellerby, Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire to prepare soldiers for combat in Afghanistan

Seven replica mosques were erected on a range at Bellerby, Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire to prepare soldiers for combat in Afghanistan.

The Bradford Council of Mosques said that the structures were being used as a 'symbol of danger' and served to reinforce negative stereotypes of Muslims. Pictured is one of Afghanistan's largest mosques in Mazar-e-Sharif

The Bradford Council of Mosques said that the structures were being used as a ‘symbol of danger’ and served to reinforce negative stereotypes of Muslims. Pictured is one of Afghanistan’s largest mosques in Mazar-e-Sharif

Some of the mosques have single domes and others have double domes, and appear to be targets for six firing ranges around 100 metres away, in full view of the main road.

The BMC said that the mosques were being used as a ‘symbol of danger’ and served to reinforce negative stereotypes of Muslims. Continue Reading →

The Labservatives — an Interesting Election Video

Posted on by

From Labservative.com.

Whatever one might think of the Liberal Democrats, this election video, ridiculing Labour and the Conservatives as the same thing, is certainly spot on. I’m not sure that the LibDems themselves are much different, but the video is worth watching. Also check out their shop and comments section.

This week’s “Tales from the ‘Freedom’ Files”

Posted on by

This week’s stories remind us once again of how ‘old fashioned’, rational thought is being replaced by ‘progressive’, irrational ideology. The Loony Left in its mission to create a better, more thoughtful world continues to cast aside what they consider the useless notions of public consultation, debate and majority consent in favour of their gentler, wiser, dictatorial approach. Initially we at vladtepesblog were reluctant to post these stories, as we felt they may provide more data for the social engineers of our cities to expand their role of government interference in our personal choices and anything else enjoyable. Quickly concluding they will rail on regardless, we got over it. Enjoy.

#1 From The U.K.  Council Shuts Down Art Club Claiming Children are ‘Too Middle-Class’. Paint Pots Arts Club, a children’s care centre for kids under five has been forced to close after council deemed the families using it were too middle-class. The Paint Pots Art Club, part of the Sure Start child care scheme introduced across Britain in 2000,  is one of the busiest centres catering to children of all backgrounds. But despite it’s popularity, Hackney Council in East London pulled the plug claiming not enough ‘deprived’ families were represented at the service. Officials concluded that 68% of all users were white and not sufficiently ‘vulnerable’. Paint Pots director Ella Ritchies was told by the Learning Trust to canvas both the Turkish and Kurdish communities and council estates to try to spark interest but most canvassed were not interested in attending. “Based on our monitoring information, the Art Club is not reaching the families who have the most difficult needs. Accordingly, I have to advise you that the contract for the Art Club will end March 31” said an official from the Ann Taylor Children’s Centre.

#2 From Canada.  Street Hockey Dad Fights Fine. More than 500 people have signed a petition to strike down a Montreal area West Island bylaw that forbids street sports, after a father was fined for playing hockey outside with his son and friends. David Sasson and his seven year old son were playing street hockey on a residential street in Dollard-des-Ormeaux when public security officers who patrol the neighbourhood issued Mr. Sasson a $75 fine resulting from a noise complaint. ” That’s the way we have worked all these years” said acting Mayor Zoe Bayouk. The bylaw forbidding playing in the street has been in Dollard-des-Ormeaux since 1992. Mr. Sasson is fighting the fine and has since organized another game in protest.
File:Dick and Jane.jpg

#3 From Russia.  Russia Bans Hitler’s ‘ Mein Kampf”. Adolf Hitler’s book ” Mein Kampf” has been banned in Russia in an attempt to combat the growing allure of far-right politics. Prosecutors claim the 1925 semi-autobiographical book’s outline of racial supremacy has encouraged extremist and violent behaviour. Sova, a Moscow based non-governmental organization responsible for tracking racist violence, stated that 60 people were killed and 306 injured in hate attacks in Russia last year. The ban was initiated after a regional office of the prosecutor sought new ways to combat extremism. In 1950, George Orwell’s novel ” Nineteen Eighty Four” was banned by the Soviets as Stalin believed it to be a satire based on his leadership and was not re-released and legalized until 1990 after extensive ‘editing’. William Gray’s novel ” Fun With Dick and Jane” also seized, remains on the banned list due to it’s pro-American content. (In 2009, Reporters Without Borders ranked Russia 153 out of 175 in the Press Freedom Index. According to International Press Institute, Russia is the most dangerous European country for journalists).

1984first.jpg
British first edition cover

#4 From The U.K. School Bans Photographs of Pupils. West Community College in Watford, Herts has informed the parents of attending pupils that new restrictions would be put in place banning photographs being taken of students. The letter said in order to ‘safeguard’ pupils, parents, carers and friends could no longer photograph or videotape school events including sport days, drama plays and school trips. The school is thought to be the first in the country to apply such a blanket ban. School officials cite the necessity of the measure to protect students from ‘on-line exploitation’ and ‘ the threat of cyber-bullying’. Camera equipment will be prevented from being taken onto school grounds. The decision had been made after pictures of children were used inappropriately online, resulting in legal action taken against schools. The letter concluded by saying “I appreciate that you may be upset by this decision but hope you will understand the need for the school to protect the safety of our students at all times”.

#5 From The U.K.  Five Year Old Boy Left Stranded in Tree Due to Health and Safety Policy; Good Samaratin Reported to Police. A mischievous five year old boy climbed a school tree and soon found himself unable to climb back down leaving him stranded. Following health and safety guidelines, teachers at Manor School in Melksham, Wiltshire are banned from helping and, retreated inside the school to ‘observe from a distance’ so the child would not become distracted and fall. The boy was only rescued when passer-by Kim Barrett noticed the child and helped him down herself. But instead of being thanked for her good deed, the headteacher reported her to police for trespassing. The associate head “didn’t appear to be at all concerned” said Ms. Barrett. Headteacher Beverly Martin confirmed the school’s policy which prevents staff from going to the aid of children who have climbed trees. ” The safety of our pupils is our priority and we would like to make it clear that this child was being observed at all times”. To protect children, we cannot assume that people who enter school grounds without permission have innocent intentions and (we) must act accordingly. I am sure these expectations are the same in every school and are centered on children’s well being”.

…..And the story we almost forgot to mention……..
“Watch Your Mouth Ann”. University of Ottawa tells right-wing, American pundit Ann Coulter to watch her mouth urging her to use ‘restraint’, ‘respect’ and ‘consideration’ during one of a trio of speaking engagements booked at Canadian university campuses. Vice president and provost Francoise Houle advised Coulter via e-mail to ‘inform herself of Canadian hate speech and defamation laws’ before giving her talk. Days later her speaking engagement was canceled. Blame is abundant on all sides of the Coulter incident; police  and university officials say it was the event’s organizers who shut it down and event organizers said it was police warnings of anti-Coulter demonstrators claiming they could not guarantee her safety. But after sifting through the mess, one things is abundantly clear as The National Post points out in an editorial of March 25:
” It matters little who is correct (both could be). The true cause is the same either way: angry left-wing students and protesters who cannot bear the idea of people they dislike having a say”. It was not Ms. Coulter’s controversial views that forced the cancellation. Nor, in the end, was it any specific action by politically correct university administrators. Rather it was the potential for violence from the crowd outside that silenced her, which sets a very dangerous precedent for free speech in this country”.
” Universities used to fight vigorously for the free expression of ideas, all sorts of ideas, even discomforting and controversial ones. Now they seem to stick up only for those ideas backed up by the promise of anger, violence and vandalism”. Indeed, a triumph for thuggery over scholarship.

Islamophobia is a threat to democracy

Posted on by

Muslims and thier allies respond

Those poor misunderstood Muslims

 GAURDIAN NEWS… We are concerned by the rise of Islamophobia, the negative coverage of Muslims in the media, the violent street mobilisations of extreme rightwing organisations like the English Defence League, and the rising electoral support for the British National party (The battle for Barking, Weekend, 13 March). Following Channel 4’s recent inflammatory documentary, Britain’s Islamic Republic, which saw concentrated attacks on the East London Mosque, the English Defence League marched through central London with placards including the demand “Close the East London Mosque now”.

The East End of London is not new to having its communities attacked by fascists and the media. The 1930s saw the Battle of Cable Street when Oswald Mosley’s blackshirts attempted to march into the Jewish community in the area. We cannot allow this terrible history to repeat itself. Further, the documentary, and articles since, have attacked the participation in politics by the Muslim community. We cannot stand by and watch this continue without remark or action.

In the runup to the general election, all parts of the population should be actively encouraged to exercise their votes. That is democracy. We welcome the work of organisations who work to this end. We call for solidarity and support for those organisations that work to encourage political participation from all sections of society, including Muslims, and condemn those who seek to undermine it. Continue Reading →

Britain’s Islamic Republic. Dispatches report in 5 parts

Posted on by

Islam TV in Britain: hatred, intolerance & misogyny regularly broadcast.

Posted on by

From The Daily Mail U.K.

Islamic TV show ‘backed marital rape’ and promotes extremist groups, claims Muslim think tank

By Steve Doughty
Last updated at 10:27 PM on 25th March 2010

Terrorists Could Use Explosives in Breast Implants to Crash Planes, Experts Warn

Posted on by

FOXNEWS… Female homicide bombers are being fitted with exploding breast implants which are almost impossible to detect, British spies have reportedly discovered.

The shocking new Al Qaeda tactic involves radical doctors inserting the explosives in women’s breasts during plastic surgery — making them “virtually impossible to detect by the usual airport scanning machines.”

It is believed the doctors have been trained at some of Britain’s leading teaching hospitals before returning to their own countries to perform the surgical procedures.

MI5 has also discovered that extremists are inserting the explosives into the buttocks of some male bombers.

“Women suicide bombers recruited by Al Qaeda are known to have had the explosives inserted in their breasts under techniques similar to breast enhancing surgery,” Terrorist expert Joseph Farah claims.

The lethal explosives called PETN are inserted inside plastic shapes during the operation, before the breast is then sewn up.

The discovery of these methods was made after London-educated Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab came close to blowing up an airliner in the U.S. on Christmas Day.

He had stuffed explosives inside his underpants.

Hours after he had failed, Britain’s intelligence services began to pick up “chatter” emanating from Pakistan and Yemen that alerted MI5 to the creation of the lethal implants.

A hand-picked team investigated the threat which was described as “one that can circumvent our defense.”

Top surgeons have confirmed the feasibility of the explosive implants.

Explosive experts allegedly told MI5 that a sachet containing as little as five ounces of PETN could blow “a considerable hole” in an airline’s skin, causing it to crash.

MP quizzed by police after saying ‘wearing burkha was like having paper bag over your head’

Posted on by

 MAILONLINE… An MP was investigated by police for inciting racial hatred over controversial burkha comments following complaints from a human rights association.

Conservative MP Philip Hollobone said wearing a burkha was the religious equivalent of ‘going round with a paper bag over your head’.

During a parliamentary debate last month he urged the House of Commons to ‘seriously consider’ banning the garment.

Now it has emerged police received a complaint about the Kettering MP a few days after his comments from the Northamptonshire Rights and Equality Council (NREC).

Officers rang Mr Hollobone to say a complaint had been made but the Crown Prosecution dropped the case a few days later as there were no grounds for prosecution.

Debates in Westminster are protected by parliamentary privilege but Mr Hollobone said the complaint could have related to comments made inside or outside the Commons.

He blasted the ‘hypocritical and ‘patronising’ NREC today for championing freedom of speech while attempting to have him prosecuted.

Last month the organisation sent the outspoken MP a letter criticising his stance on Muslim women who chose to wear the burkha in public.

Mr Hollobone said: ‘It’s complete hypocrisy. They talk on one hand about freedom of speech and expression and then without even making contact try to get me prosecuted.

‘In this country you should be able to have a debate about controversial subjects without the threat of police action. That’s how democracy works. Continue Reading →

Sharia Stock Exchange to Launch in London

Posted on by

From Reuters. By Cecilia Valente

LONDON, March 17 (Reuters) – The first electronic trading platform allowing sharia-compliant companies to raise cash will launch in London in May, the venture capital firm behind the project told Reuters on Thursday.

The Sharia Ummah Securities Information Exchange (UMEX) is designed to provide a platform to companies with a capital value of at least 20 million pounds ($31 million) and looking to raise the equivalent of at least 20 percent of their market value. Continue Reading →

Dozens arrested as anti-Muslim English Defence League protestors battle rivals

Posted on by
UAF supporters Bolton 10

UAF supporters Bolton 10

 TIMESONLINE… Riot police battled to control thousands of rival demonstrators taking part in an ill-tempered city centre protest organised by a controversial right-wing group.

Hundreds of officers, some horse-mounted and armed with batons, separated supporters of the English Defence League (EDL) and members of Unite Against Fascism (UAF).

Two officers were injured following ugly clashes: one fractured a finger, the other was bitten by a police dog. A police helicopter was also dispatched to assist the officers on the ground. There was a total of 67 arrests, 55 of which were UAF supporters and the remaining 12 EDL, police said.

The EDL organised the rally in Bolton, Lancashire, to protest against “radical Muslims” and Sharia law. At its height there were some 2,000 EDL and a further 1,500 UAF protestors.

The main protest took place in front of the town hall, which was boarded up to prevent any damage. Many local pubs and shops closed and taxi firms pulled their drivers off the roads.

Council leaders had met with Home Secretary Alan Johnson earlier this week in a bid to ban the demonstration, but were told there was no power to do so unless it took place on private property.

Assistant Chief Constable Garry Shewan, who is leading the operation for Greater Manchester Police (GMP), said: “Today in Bolton we have seen groups of people, predominantly associated with the UAF, engaging in violent confrontation. Continue Reading →