UK protests live updates as demonstrators clash with police

Trouble has broken out in cities across the UK amid rival protests following the tragic mass stabbing attack in Southport that claimed the lives of three young girls. Rival protesters have clashed with each other, and police, in cities including Liverpool, Manchester and Nottingham.

Planned demonstrations in cities across the country got under way on Saturday as tensions remain high after the killing of three young girls at a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club on Monday. Cardiff-born Axel Muganwa Rudakubana, 17, is accused of the attack, but false claims spread online that the suspect was an asylum seeker who had arrived in the UK by boat.

On Saturday, bricks were thrown at officers in Stoke-on-Trent, fireworks were thrown amid tense exchanges between an anti-Islamic group and an anti-racism rally in Belfast, and windows of a hotel which has been used to house migrants were smashed in Hull. Greater Manchester Police said a dispersal notice had been authorised for the city centre and Merseyside Police said greater stop and search powers had been granted for officers to deal with planned demonstrations.

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Scuffles broke out as opposing groups faced each other in Nottingham’s Market Square with bottles and other items thrown from both sides. There were also reports of scuffles in Manchester and Liverpool. Since the mass stabbing on Monday, there have been several instances of unrest up and down the country. There were violent scenes in Southport on Tuesday as rioters clashed with police.

There have also been scenes of violent unrest in