At least 10 police officers injured in violence outside Rotherham hotel

04 August 2024 , 19:21

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At least 10 police officers injured in violence outside Rotherham hotel

At least 10 police officers have been injured after far-right rioters gathered outside a hotel housing asylum seekers in Rotherham.

Around 700 people were among the crowd that stormed the building and tried to set it on fire while ‘terrified’ residents and staff were trapped inside, South Yorkshire Police said.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper condemned the ‘extremist groups who have been attacking police officers, looting local shops or attacking people based on the colour of their skin’. 

Prime minister Keir Starmer pledged to ‘do whatever it takes to bring these thugs to justice as quickly as possible’ as protests continued for the sixth day since the Southport killings.

Sophia Martinez

World Affairs Correspondent