Riots, violence, hate: Anti-immigrant unrest spells danger in Belfast

Belfast, Northern Ireland – When violence broke out in east Belfast near Zeinab’s home, as a mother of three from Sudan, she felt terrified.

Anti-immigrant rioters have carried out a wave of racist attacks in the Northern Irish capital after a knife attack on Wednesday.

The alleged assailant, a 30-year-old Sudanese national who entered Northern Ireland through Ireland, has been charged with attempted murder. The victim, 44-year-old Stephen Ogilvie, remains in hospital with life-changing injuries to his face and back, having reportedly lost an eye.

“We strongly condemn and reject what happened,” said Zeinab, who requested to withhold her surname. “Unfortunately, it turned out that (the suspect) is of Sudanese nationality. But this is the opposite of what is known about our Sudanese people. They are kind people, known for their generosity, their morals, and the way they treat others.”

As agitators burned homes and businesses they believed to be owned by ethnic minorities, Zeinab asked an NGO, the Anaka Women’s Collective, to evacuate her family.

Like other people of colour, she was welcomed by an Irish family and is now taking shelter outside Belfast.

“May God reward them with all goodness. We cannot describe what they have done for us,” she said. “We feel that not everyone here is unaccepting of foreigners. There is goodness, there are people who love us, people who shared their homes with us, shared our worries, shared our moments of weakness, and took us in.”

On Tuesday evening, an eerie silence took hold of the city as panicked local traders hurriedly pulled up their shutters, locking up early after threats issued on social media earlier that day.