Two people were stabbed and a number of police were injured after officers were pelted with petrol bombs and bricks in Bradford late on Saturday in the latest wave of race riots to sweep northern England. Riot police and officers on horseback charged crowds in Bradford, north-central England, in an effort to control mobs which had smashed shop windows and set cars on fire.
A group of 300 mainly Asian youths gathered Saturday afternoon for a rally held by the Anti-Nazi League after the extreme right-wing National Front indicated it was planning a march in the town, which has an Asian population of about 100,000.
The anti-racist gathering was initially peaceful. Witnesses said trouble was sparked after a group of white men came out of a city centre pub and began shouting racial insults.
This prompted a fight involving Asian youths which spilled into the neighbouring streets. Police said two white men had received knife injuries, and 18 people had been arrested.
A police spokesman said, "About 80 officers have been retired from duty in the town, some because they are exhausted after a long shift, but a significant number because they have been injured. The injuries are believed to be minor."
Local residents estimated that up to 1,000 Asian youths were involved in the violence at one point.
Community leader Mohammed Riaz said the situation was out of control. "What is happening here is terrible. Businesses are being attacked, cars are being set on fire and I cannot believe these scenes are taking place in a city in England."
The Anglican bishop of Bradford, David Smith, appealed for calm. he said, "I think the only winners from all this are the racists who will be hitting back and saying thank you for doing our work for us.”
"The young people involved in the violence are angry and frustrated and we will need to sit down with them and talk to them and listen to them and hear what they have to say."
An eyewitness said a white man was stabbed after being surrounded by a dozen Asian youths.
"He tried to fight his way out but was knocked to the ground and he was punched and kicked. One of the youths then pulled out a knife and stabbed him in the back ... it was terrifying."
The centre of Bradford was cleared by police after disturbances lasting three hours but violence then flared in the Manningham district of the city, where youths threw petrol bombs at officers and set cars alight.
Police on horseback charged the mob. Several people were injured by flying debris.
Some locals blamed officers for aggravating tension by being heavy-handed, a claim denied by police.
A police spokesman said there had been no large turnout of National Front supporters but five had been persuaded to turn back when they arrived at Bradford railway station. Naveed Butt, 31, blamed troublemakers from outside the town for the violence.
He added, "It reflects badly on every single Pakistani -- not just in Bradford but in the whole of Britain." Chief Superintendent Phil Read of West Yorkshire Police urged troublemakers to stay away.
He said, "The police will not tolerate any group attempting to cause disorder or stir up racial hatred."
The violence followed recent race riots in the northern towns of Burnley, Leeds and Oldham. Police in Oldham accused the extreme-right British National Party (BNP) of inciting racial hatred.
The ultra-nationalist BNP polled more than 10 per cent of the vote in Oldham and Burnley in the June 7 general election, both towns with large Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Indian communities. Bureau Report