Police thank London for unity and ‘community spirit’

The Metropolitan Police has thanked Londoners for “coming together” and for “showing community spirit” on Wednesday night.

More than 1,000 officers were deployed across the capital ready to respond to supposedly planned violent disorder.

None of the far-right groups turned up to the London locations that had been discussed online, but instead, large anti-racism protests were held, with the largest in Waltham Forest and Finchley.

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said: “It went off very peacefully.”

The Met said it did face some anti-social behaviour from a “small group” in Croydon, which “were not related to any protest, but were intent on causing trouble.”

Officers made 10 arrests in the area, including one for assault on an emergency worker, and four for violent disorder.

London had braced itself for a night of violence by the far-right after a list of potential target areas was leaked online.

It followed violent scenes across the country last week after the fatal stabbing of three girls in Southport, Merseyside – with unrest said to have been fuelled by misinformation online.

Sir Mark said he was “really pleased” with how the “massive” policing operation went.

“The show of force from the police and frankly the show of unity from communities together defeated the challenges that we’ve seen,” he said.

“The fears of extreme right disorder were abated – a successful operation thanks to communities and police.”

In relation to the disorder seen last week in Whitehall, the commissioner said police had carried out dawn raids on Thursday to catch those responsible, and 10 arrests had been made.

“These are criminals, they’re thugs, they’re not patriots,” he said.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Andy Valentine said police had been “ready to protect our communities from hateful, divisive and violent behaviour”.

Although events were largely peaceful, 15 arrests were made across the city.

He said: “We used a range of powers as part of our policing operation in order to keep people safe.

“This included the use of Section 60 and 60AA powers across various locations, giving officers extra powers to stop and search people and request the removal of face coverings.

“As a result, officers seized a number of weapons.”

He added: “I want to thank our communities for coming together across the capital and for showing community spirit this evening.

“I would also like to thank the committed officers who have been working hard to police London today, serving their communities and keeping people safe.”