England is witnessing its worst rioting in 13 years after disturbances linked to child murders and involving far-riot agitators flared across the country on Sunday. The anti-immigration protests erupted following a mass stabbing that killed three young girls earlier this week.

A knife attack at a Taylor Swift-theme dance party in Southport, near Liverpool on England’s northwest coast on Monday, led to the unrest. As the protest gained momentum over the weekend, a mob of hundreds of rioters sought to break into a Holiday Inn Express hotel, which was being used as accommodation for asylum-seekers.

Anti-immigration demonstrators clashed with police in multiple towns as cities. In the latest incident, trouble flared in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, on Sunday, when masked anti-immigration demonstrators smashed several windows at a hotel that has been used to house asylum seekers, news agency AFP reported.

Earlier, skirmishes broke out at far-right rallies in places such as Liverpool, Manchester, Bristol, Blackpool and Hull, as well as Belfast in Northern Ireland.

In some instances, rioters threw bricks, bottles and flares at police – injuring several officers – looted and burnt shops, while demonstrators shouted anti-Islamic slurs as they clashed with counter-protesters.

‘Worst riots in 13 years’

The violence is the worst England has seen since the summer of 2011, when widespread rioting took place following the police killing of a mixed-race man in north London, AFP reported.

“We’re now seeing it [trouble] flooding across major cities and towns,” said Tiffany Lynch of the Police Federation of England and Wales.

The government said the police have “all the resources they need” to deal with the disorder, as forces drafted in thousands of extra officers to try to stop the violence from spreading further.

‘False rumour’ led to violence?

The protests were fuelled by false rumours on social media about the background of British-born 17-year-old suspect Axel Rudakubana, who is accused of killing a six, seven, and nine-year-old, and injuring another 10 people in the knife attack.

According to the Associated Press, the violence erupted after rumors spread online that the suspect in the dance class stabbing attack was a Muslim and an immigrant. This reportedly fueled anger among far-right supporters.

Suspects under 18 are usually not named in the UK, but Judge Andrew Menary ordered Axel Rudakubana, born in Wales to Rwandan parents, to be identified, in part to stop the spread of misinformation.

Rudakubana has been charged with three counts of murder, and 10 counts of attempted murder.

Meanwhile, far-right agitators sought to take advantage of the stabbing attack by tapping into concerns about the scale of immigration in the UK, in particular the tens of thousands of migrants arriving in small boats from France across the English Channel. On Saturday, far-right activists faced off with anti-racism protesters across the UK.

‘147 arrested, disinformation driving violence’

BJ Harrington of the National Police Chiefs’ Council said in a statement on Sunday 147 people have been arrested since last night in connection with violence and that he expects the number to rise in the coming days.

Police blamed disinformation for driving the “appalling violence” and added that “often posts are being shared and amplified by high profile accounts”. The statement read, “Disinformation is a huge driver of this appalling violence and we know a lot of those attending these so-called protests are doing so in direct response to what they’ve read online.”

“Often posts are being shared and amplified by high profile accounts. We’re working hard to counteract this. We know we’re not alone and we are drawing together our communities and our partners to help us do even more to silence those intent on spreading false news. They won’t win,” police said in the statement.

As caution, police urged people to “think twice before you act”. Harrington said, “Attempts to disrupt our communities have no place in our society and I’d like to thank everyone for the support and solidarity they’ve shown.”

‘Enough is enough’

Police said many of the weekend actions were organised online by shadowy far-right groups, who mobilise support with phrases like “enough is enough,” “save our kids” and “stop the boats.”

The rallies were advertised on far-right social media channels under the banner “Enough is enough”. Besides, participants waved English and British flags while chanting slogans like “Stop the boats” – a reference to irregular migrants travelling to Britain from France.

Police blamed the violence on supporters and associated organisations of the English Defence League, an anti-Islam organisation founded 15 years ago whose supporters have been linked to football hooliganism.

Agitators have targeted mosques in Southport and in the northeastern English city of Sunderland, leading to hundreds of Islamic centres bolstering security amid fears for their worshippers’ safety.

Anti-fascist demonstrators have held counter-rallies in many cities, including Leeds where they shouted, “Nazi scum off our streets”, as the far-right protesters chanted, “You’re not English any more”.

Not all the gatherings have turned violent. A peaceful one in Aldershot, southern England, on Sunday saw participants hold placards that read “Stop the invasion” and “We’re not far right, we’re just right”.

“People are fed up with being told you should be ashamed if you’re white and working class but I’m proud white working class,” 41-year-old Karina, who did not give her surname, told AFP in Nottingham on Saturday.

Commentators have suggested that the demonstrators, spurred on by online influencers, may feel emboldened by the political ascendancy of anti-immigration elements in British politics.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer called unrest in UK streets “far-right thuggery”, and said that Muslim communities had been targeted. He announced new measures to allow the sharing of intelligence, wider deployment of facial-recognition technology and criminal behaviour orders to restrict troublemakers from travelling.

The violence poses a major test for Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who was elected only a month ago after leading Labour to a landslide win over the Conservatives.

(With inputs from agencies)