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United Kingdom police have arrested five people following three nights of anti-migrant protests in Thetford, eastern England, where asylum seekers were escorted from properties targeted by demonstrators, authorities said on Friday.
The protests took place from Tuesday to Thursday at buildings demonstrators believed were being used to house asylum seekers, Norfolk Police Chief Constable Paul Sanford told BBC Radio 4.
Sanford said police had to escort some residents to safety because of the threat posed by demonstrators, including asylum seekers living at some of the targeted properties. The demonstrations followed proposals to use a nearby disused military site to accommodate asylum seekers.
The British government is seeking alternative accommodation as it works to reduce its reliance on hotels, which have become frequent sites of anti-migrant protests.
Under UK law, authorities are required to provide asylum seekers with accommodation and access to healthcare while their applications are being processed.
More than 100 people reportedly protested on Tuesday and Wednesday after a list of properties allegedly linked to asylum seeker accommodation was circulated online, according to The Guardian.
Three people were arrested during the first two nights on suspicion of public order offences. Police said one officer was struck by a rock, another was bitten and a third was spat at. Two more men were arrested on Thursday night, when police said the protests were calmer.
Videos circulating online showed police escorting residents from targeted properties as demonstrators shouted anti-migrant slogans.
Sanford said police intervention was necessary because the demonstrators were likely to enter the properties and endanger the occupants if officers had not intervened.
The protests come as tensions over immigration in Britain heighten, with anti-migrant demonstrations also reported in other parts of the country and Northern Ireland.
In June, riots broke out in Belfast following the arrest of a Sudanese asylum seeker over an alleged stabbing.
Earlier this year, hundreds of people also protested against plans to accommodate asylum seekers at a former military barracks in southern England.
