Man stabbed in Belfast; UK leaders call for calm
A Sudanese asylum seeker was arrested after a knife attack in north Belfast. Anti-immigration protests followed, with vehicles set on fire in several neighborhoods.
bbc.co.ukU.K. leaders called for calm Tuesday after a Sudanese man was arrested following a stabbing in north Belfast that left a man in his 40s hospitalized with serious injuries. The attack occurred late Monday. Police said the victim suffered wounds to his eyes, face and back.
Officers recovered a kitchen knife at the scene and charged the 30-year-old suspect with attempted murder, possession of a knife in a public place and making threats to kill.
Attack and investigation Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson of the Police Service of Northern Ireland said there was no indication the attack was terrorism-related and that no other suspects were being sought. Northern Ireland’s chief constable Jon Boutcher told reporters the suspect entered the U.K. on a five-year visa issued in September 2023.
He is believed to have traveled from Sudan through Paris and Dublin before claiming asylum in Belfast.
Protests and political reaction Protesters in black hoodies torched a bus in east Belfast and set cars and trash bins ablaze in other parts of the city. Similar demonstrations took place in Southampton, England, outside a hotel that had housed asylum seekers.
Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn told Parliament he could not confirm the suspect’s route into the U.K. when asked about the case.
““This brutal attack will have sent shock waves through the community, causing real concern.””
