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A knife attack in Belfast, Northern Ireland, caught on graphic video, has shaken the local community and been condemned by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer as “horrifying”.
Local police announced on Tuesday that they had arrested a Sudanese man in his 30s on suspicion of attempted murder following an attack that left another man hospitalized in critical condition. Police initially described the suspect as a Somali national, but later confirmed in an updated statement that he was Sudanese.
Much of Monday night’s attack in north Belfast was filmed by witnesses and has since gone viral on social media. The footage shows a man pinning another man to the ground, who was covered in blood from the head, and attacking him before bystanders and police intervened. Northern Ireland Assistant Constable Ryan Henderson told reporters on Tuesday that the victim suffered serious eye injuries and serious injuries to his back and face, PA Media reported.
Mr Henderson said there was currently no evidence of a link to terrorism, stressing that police were still in the early stages of the investigation. It added that the suspect had a legal right to reside in Northern Ireland.
Police acknowledged the attack caused “deep concern for the community” and Mr Henderson said: “Our forces are aware of this evening’s call for protests across Northern Ireland” and urged the public to remain calm.
Speaking at a subsequent press conference, Chief Constable John Boucher of Northern Ireland Police said: “We want to make sure that people who know nothing about Northern Ireland do not influence the behavior of the people of Northern Ireland from afar through social media.”
A year ago, several nights of racially motivated violent riots broke out in the nearby town of Ballymena after two Romanian teenage boys were accused of sexually assaulting a teenage girl. Ultimately, all charges against the pair were dropped.
The attack came at a time when the political atmosphere in Britain was already high. Last week, the release of body camera footage showing the death of Henry Nowak, a white student who was stabbed to death and handcuffed by police in December, sparked nationwide protests, with officers condemned for their actions and far-right leaders accused of using the killing to incite racist violence for political gain.
Prime Minister Starmer called Monday night’s attack “horrific” and “sickening”, adding: “Such abhorrent scenes of violence on our streets are completely unacceptable.”
“My thoughts are first and foremost with the victims. I would like to thank the first responders, including members of the public, who intervened,” he said.
Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch, leader of the centre-right Conservative opposition party, immediately linked the attack to illegal immigration, without providing evidence, and called on police to “set out the facts as soon as possible to clarify the situation”.
Nigel Farage, whose far-right populist Reform Party leads in most opinion polls, echoed those calls, saying: “The authorities should immediately reveal the identity and status of the attackers.”
CNN’s Niamh Kennedy contributed to this report.
