Europe

London Mayor: Stay Away Because Far-Right Mobs Are Coming

‘FLASHPOINT’

The extremists say they want to protect statues, but authorities are worried there could be violence.

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Dan Kitwood/Getty

London mayor Saddiq Khan’s warning to stay away from central London on Saturday proved accurate as far-right demonstrators and anti-racism protesters clashed with police, who attempted to keep the two sides apart. “We have intelligence that extreme far right groups are coming to London ostensibly, they say, to protect the statues, but we think the statues may be a flashpoint for violence,” Khan said on Saturday morning before the gathering began. A statue of Winston Churchill that was spray-painted last week was boarded up in anticipation of this weekend’s demonstrations.

Read it at Reuters

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