Large scale disorder in Sunderland this evening has been condemned by the North East Mayor.
Police in riot gear have come under attack, missiles have been thrown, an overturned car has been set on fire and there was a stand off outside a mosque.
Hundreds of people gathered in Keel Square, in Sunderland city centre for a planned protest at 7pm.
A large police presence was watching the marchers, some of whom were draped in England flags.
But as the evening progressed, violent scenes started to break out.
North East Mayor Kim McGuinness said: “I’m appalled by scenes from Sunderland. Make no mistake, if your response to tragedy is to use it to commit violence, to abuse others, attack the police and damage property you stand for nothing except thuggery. It’s not protest.
“It’s crime and disorder. You don’t speak for Sunderland. You don’t speak for this region.
“Those grieving in Southport will take no comfort from this.”
Sunderland Central MP Lewis Atkinson said he was “appalled” by the disorder.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, he said: “Our city is not represented by a tiny minority causing trouble.
“(Northumbria Police) have my full support as they respond to criminal thuggery and work to protect all the communities of our city.
“Tomorrow the people of Sunderland will come together and continue to build the bright future that we have – a future where every community of our city feels safe and prospers.”
A large police presence was watching the marchers, some of whom were draped in England flags, as they set off from Keel Square.
The large crowd, some dressed all in black and wearing balaclavas, soon started chanting and throwing flares.
A police car was smashed as the atmosphere started turning nasty, Mounted police followed the march, along with officers in vans who battled their way through traffic to keep up.
The mob made their way towards a mosque on Sunderland’s St Mark’s Road,
Police in riot gear came under attack with stones and beer cans thrown.
Some protesters argued about “two-tier policing” as the police threw a protective ring around the mosque.
Mounted police pushed back demonstrators, some of whom were in masks.
Meanwhile, customers in the next door Aldi filmed the scenes on their phones through the shop window and the store closed its doors.
Some of the crowd started to move on and disorder started back at Sunderland’s newly refurbished Keel Square where the demonstration began.
Police had beer barrels thrown at them as they tried to contain the several hundred protesters.
Read more:
- Sunderland LIVE: Car set alight in disturbance as riot police on scene
- Hartlepool community left in shock after night of unrest
- Plea for calm across North East in wake of Hartlepool riots
As a helicopter flew overhead, young men threw stones at the police and chanted “whose streets, our streets”.
A taxi driver on Hazel Road was targeted when people started banging on his car.
"We just want it to be over, they're just drunks," one person caught up in the violence was heard to say.
A police station in Sunderland city centre has been set on fire, according to multiple videos posted on social media.
Northumbria Police have yet to confirm this, but said in a post on X that its officers had been “subjected to serious violence”.
The post added: “The scenes that we are seeing are completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Ensuring the public’s safety is our utmost priority.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article