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Sky News Report: Seventeen Arrested At Right Wing ProtestSaturday 23 January 2010: The English Defence League (EDL) reappeared on the streets of England for the first time this year, this time in Stoke-on-Trent in the Midlands.
Within minutes of the march being led a few hundred metres under police escort to the designated protest rally point, EDL supporters surged towards the police lines blocking them from the Unite Against Fascism protest. The scene quickly deteriorated into heavy violence, as Sky News reported that night, which led to being the top Sky News UK story by Sunday.
Police and journalists came under a hail of bottles, rocks, wooden planks, metal fixtures, cigarette lighters, burning rags and coins as riot squads were brought in to contain the protest of 500. At one point a large smoke bomb was set off. Riot helmets were ripped from officers heads and hurled back into police lines as weapons.
Within minutes of the march being led a few hundred metres under police escort to the designated protest rally point, EDL supporters surged towards the police lines blocking them from the Unite Against Fascism protest. The scene quickly deteriorated into heavy violence, as Sky News reported that night, which led to being the top Sky News UK story by Sunday.
Police and journalists came under a hail of bottles, rocks, wooden planks, metal fixtures, cigarette lighters, burning rags and coins as riot squads were brought in to contain the protest of 500. At one point a large smoke bomb was set off. Riot helmets were ripped from officers heads and hurled back into police lines as weapons.
The racism was also there again, as the video shows, with a protestor caught on film shouting at riot police officer, "You fucking Paki loving bastard", crowds chanting. "Allah was a paedo" and one youth shouting, "You fucking Jewish bas...". Unfortunately the last was cut short on film as I had to duck yet another plank of hurled wood.
Police vans were then attacked, finally the attacks directing towards the police and any journalists caught out in open. Three photographers were punched, one hit in the chest with a plank of wood and one hit in the face with thrown coins. Six police officers, one member of the public were also injured during two-hour street battle and five police vehicles were badly damaged.
This time the EDL did break out through the riot police lines. They headed into a nearby estate where locals told us two streets were known to be predominantly Asian and Muslim. From then on there was just a trail of destruction of broken shop and car windows and terrified locals, most of those our team saw were English, one woman hysterical and in tears after her car was smashed up.
So far seventeen people have arrested, six were charged with racial and public order offences and police continue to review CCTV footage.
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