British PM urges calm after protests over handcuffed student’s death
Key takeaways
- “This is a time for serious work, not rage,” Starmer added in a direct rebuff to the leader of the right-wing anti-immigration Reform Party, Nigel Farage.
- Farage had called for people to respond to Nowak’s murder with “pure cold rage”, and told parliament that the anger on show in Southampton could spread if people lose faith with the police.
- In the attack last December, Nowak’s killer Vickrum Digwa, 23, lied to police saying that Nowak had racially abused and assaulted him during a brief altercation in the street.
Why this matters: local context for readers following news across Pakistan and the region.
Add ARY News on Google AAResize LONDON: British Prime Minister (PM) Keir Starmer condemned violent protests over the case of an 18-year-old who was handcuffed as he lay dying after his killer falsely alleged a racist attack, and said it was “unforgivable” to exploit it to stir tensions.
The murder of student Henry Nowak last year has dominated headlines in Britain since his Sikh killer was sentenced on Monday, and footage of officers ignoring the pleas of a dying, innocent man has sparked a political storm about how police treat different ethnicities.
“There is no justification for more violence and disorder,” Starmer said on Wednesday, after protesters clashed with police and injured 11 officers on Tuesday night in the city of Southampton, in southern England, close to where Nowak was killed.