Belfast sees violent unrest after stabbing as victim’s family urges calm – National
Northern Ireland authorities and the family of Stephen Ogilvie, the victim of an alleged stabbing attack by a Sudanese man in Belfast earlier this week, are urging demonstrators to refrain from further violence after the incident spurred a wave of anti-immigration unrest in parts of the city.
“We want to make it absolutely clear that overnight unrest is not welcome, and peaceful protest is the only way forward,” the family of the victim said in a statement obtained by Reuters.
“We have many migrants who make a deeply valuable contribution to our country, including in our healthcare system and hospitality sector, and we depend on them to make our country work,” it continued.
Ogilvie, a man in his 40s, is in hospital after losing his left eye and suffering serious injuries to his face and back in the attack in the Kinnaird Avenue area of north Belfast on Monday, according to U.K. media reports.
Masked youths block a road with burning debris in north Belfast, Northern Ireland, on the night of June 9, 2026. Northern Ireland police appealed for calm on Tuesday after a stabbing in Belfast, allegedly by a Sudanese man, and captured in a graphic video, prompted calls for anti-immigration protests from U.K. far-right figures.
Paul Faith / AFP via Getty Images
Footage of the incident has been widely circulated on social media, despite police urging the public not to view or share it.
Hadi Alodid, the 30-year-old suspect, had been granted permission to remain in the U.K. after entering through Ireland, The Guardian reported. He appeared in court in Belfast on Wednesday, where he was charged with attempted murder and possessing a knife.
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The incident galvanized crowds of anti-immigration demonstrators who took to the streets of the Northern Ireland capital Tuesday night, where they burned homes, buses, cars and other buildings, forcing residents, including young children, to flee.
Those actions have been widely condemned by political leaders, including U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who, in an X statement, described the chaos as “shocking and completely unacceptable.”
Flames and thick black smoke rise from a burning bus during unrest on Sandy Row in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on June 9, 2026.
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“It is clear that people were targeted last night because of their background and I will not tolerate it. Those responsible will feel the full force of the law,” Starmer continued.
Northern Ireland’s First Minister, Michelle O’Neill, said the groups responsible for the outbreak of violence and vandalism showed “disgusting cowardice” by “burning families out of their homes.”
“It is thuggery, plain and simple,” she said, adding that the attack on Ogilvie was “heinous” and “wrong” but that it was being exploited by “dangerous and reckless” people to target innocent individuals who had nothing to do with his stabbing.
“Racism is wrong, intimidation is wrong, and violence is wrong,” she continued.
Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, Jon Boutcher, said at a press conference on Wednesday that violent action on the streets of Northern Ireland is an “act of self-harm.”
“This disorder is an insult to the victim of this assault, an insult to the members of the public who bravely stepped forward to save his life and the officers who rushed to the scene,” he added, before asking individuals not to stoke the fire.
“I urge those involved or considering becoming involved in disorder to stop and think. Ask yourselves is this hatred something you want to be associated with? Is this worth being prosecuted over and potentially throwing away your future? Or the future of your children?
“I am appealing for calm over the coming days and again, urge anyone considering becoming involved in violence and disorder to think long and hard to think about the repercussions for themselves and their community.”
“This has got to stop. We cannot have a society that allows this to happen,” he concluded.
A number of families, including a parent carrying their two-month-old baby, left their homes during the height of the disturbances, police said Wednesday, and several officers were injured while responding to disturbances.
“Three individuals have been arrested so far in Belfast and Newtownabbey, with more to come,” Butcher said.
People stand next to burnt-out cars and homes after demonstrations turned violent the night before in eastern Belfast, Northern Ireland, on June 10, 2026. A Sudanese man was due to appear in court in Northern Ireland on June 10 over a brutal knife attack captured on video that triggered a night of violence by anti-immigration protesters.
Paul Faith / AFP via Getty Images
The attack, which is currently not being treated as terrorism, comes at a time of heightened tensions in Britain following the murder of a student who was handcuffed by police as he lay dying from stab wounds after his killer, a Sikh man, falsely alleged a racist attack.
It also follows repeated protests about immigration, with populist parties saying Britain’s asylum policy had allowed dangerous men into the country.
Tech billionaire Elon Musk reposted many messages denouncing the state of the United Kingdom following the Belfast incident.
— with files from Reuters
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