Rioters in the Harehills area of the British city of Leeds flipped a police car and set a double-decker bus on fire after a conflict between child protective services and the parents of local children. The disturbance began around 5:00 PM local time on Thursday and continued for hours with police eventually gaining control and making several arrests.
West Yorkshire Police confirmed that multiple individuals have been detained, with further arrests anticipated in the coming days. Tracy Brabin, the region’s mayor, announced that patrols would increase to maintain peace in the area throughout Friday night and the weekend.
Assistant Chief Constable Pat Twiggs stated that officers responded to an address after reports from social workers encountering hostility during a child protection issue involving a Romanian Roma Gypsy heritage family. The parents of the seven children are alleged to have wanted to take them to Romania this Saturday before social services took five of them. Social services also alleged that they were concerned about the welfare of the children after one, a nine-month-old baby, had suffered an injury in April.
Now @WestYorksPolice have been forced to LEAVE once AGAIN as cars burn and missiles are thrown at their vehicles.
Lawless Leeds is burning. Britain is falling. pic.twitter.com/k32GUpPfQs
— Darren Grimes (@darrengrimes_) July 18, 2024
RIOTERS TOOK ADVANTAGE OF CHAOS.
Police were escorting agency workers taking children into protective custody when the situation escalated, prompting a call for additional support from dozens of officers.
Video footage circulating on social media shows large groups rioting and damaging the police vehicle, including throwing objects at it while officers were inside. The riots centered on Luxor Street, next to an area heavily populated by “Asians”—typically people with roots in South Asia (India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh) and the Middle East rather than the Far East, in British parlance.
Several roads were closed, and the public was advised to steer clear of the area.
This viral video is being shared without context by engagement farmers so I did some research.
A migrant community in the Harehills neighborhood of Leeds, England attacked police as revenge for them responding to help child protective workers who came to a home with endangered… pic.twitter.com/n2gt7RHHUG
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) July 18, 2024
JUST THE LATEST VIOLENCE.
The rioting comes just months after Muslims in Southall, West London attacked police while celebrating the end of Ramadan, throwing bricks and other objects at officers.
This is like a scene from the Black Lives Matter riots.
The electric bus is at real risk of exploding and taking the buildings next to it with it.
Britain is not meant to be a third world country.@WestYorksPolice still evacuated from Harehills. pic.twitter.com/S3Dp2kHZE6— Darren Grimes (@darrengrimes_) July 18, 2024