Bus torched as protest erupts after stabbing
East Belfast was engulfed in turmoil following a stabbing incident that ignited a fervent anti-immigration protest. Authorities report that a 30-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder and is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday. This information was provided by PA Media through Reuters.
A man in his 40s sustained severe injuries and was hospitalized after a vicious knife attack in Northern Ireland. The police have detained a Sudanese migrant under suspicion of attempted murder.
The incident occurred around 10:30 p.m. on Monday in north Belfast, as detailed by the Police Service of Northern Ireland. The victim suffered significant wounds to his face, neck, back, and eyes. Law enforcement officials believe they have recovered the weapon used, a kitchen knife, at the scene of the crime.
Footage circulating on social media purportedly shows bystanders confronting the assailant, including one individual armed with a hurling stick. Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson of the PSNI commended these civilians as “heroic,” acknowledging their intervention as crucial in saving the victim’s life, according to reports by the BBC.
During the unrest, a Glider bus was set ablaze by demonstrators on Newtownards Road in east Belfast. The anti-immigration protest was organized in direct response to the stabbing incident that occurred earlier in the city.
Police initially said the suspect was Somali but later corrected that he is believed to be Sudanese, describing the change as part of a “fast-time investigation.” Henderson said police understand the suspect came into Northern Ireland from Dublin, Ireland and had been granted leave to remain, though he said the Home Office would provide further clarity on his status.
On Monday evening, protesters burned down a bus as tensions rose in Belfast following the gruesome stabbing, despite earlier calls from authorities for calm.
BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND – JUNE 09: Police attend the scene following a stabbing attack in North Belfast on June 09, 2026 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. A knifeman has been arrested after a man was taken to hospital with serious injuries following a stabbing in north Belfast leaving the local community fearful. The incident has been condemned across the political parties offering praise to locals who intervened to stop the attack. (Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)
“At this stage, we have no information to suggest that this was a terrorist-related incident,” Henderson said, while stressing that the investigation remains in its early stages. “However, I must stress, we are still at the early stages of our investigation,” he said, according to The Sun.
Alan Mendoza, executive director of the Henry Jackson Society, told News Agency that the attack exposed what he described as failures in Britain’s immigration system.
“Britain’s broken border and migration system has been put into stark relief once more with this tragic — and entirely avoidable — case,” Mendoza said. “This man should never ever have been in the U.K., let alone been granted ‘leave to remain.’ The Irish border is the soft underbelly for a process the British public has long since lost confidence in, as well as in those administering it politically. Nothing short of a revolution in who we allow into the U.K. and how will satisfy a people fed up with false promises about immigration change.”
Police work at the scene of a stabbing on Kinnaird Avenue in north Belfast, Northern Ireland, on June 9, 2026. Northern Ireland police said Tuesday they had arrested a man following a “stabbing incident” in Belfast, with graphic online video prompting widespread condemnation and protest calls from UK far-right figures. The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said the arrested man was in his 30s, believed to be Somali, and had been detained on suspicion of attempted murder following the “serious assault involving a knife”. (Photo by Paul Faith / AFP via Getty Images)
The swift response from Prime Minister Keir Starmer marked a notable contrast with the case of Henry Nowak, an 18-year-old who was stabbed and then handcuffed by police after his attacker accused him of making racist remarks. Starmer faced criticism from some conservatives over his response to that case.
Keir Starmer, UK prime minister, during a news conference providing an update on the situation in the Middle East, at Downing Street in London, UK, on Thursday, March 5, 2026. (Tolga Akmen/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Starmer quickly posted on X that the attack was “sickening,” adding: “I have absolutely no tolerance for abhorrent scenes of violence like this on our streets.” He said his thoughts were with the victim and thanked first responders, including members of the public who intervened.
The attack prompted political reaction across the U.K. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage called on authorities to reveal the suspect’s identity and immigration status.
“What happened in Belfast last night is horrific. The authorities must reveal the identity and status of the attacker immediately. The public are entitled to the truth,” Farage wrote on X.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaks during a press conference in Westminster, United Kingdom on June 10, 2025. ( Thomas Krych/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Robert Jenrick also wrote on X: “We’ve woken up to truly barbaric footage on a street in Belfast. Of a kind you’d think you’d never see in this country. For years now I’ve urged the police to spell out the basic, sober facts, as they have them, when there are horrors like this.”
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said people would ask whether there had been “failings around our borders,” according to GB News.
Northern Ireland’s main political parties issued a joint statement condemning the violence and urging the public not to share graphic footage of the attack.
“There is no place in our society for this kind of brutality. Our immediate thoughts are with the victim and his family, and we hope he makes a full and complete recovery,” the parties said, according to GB News.
Police said they had declared a critical incident and would increase their presence across Northern Ireland amid calls for protests. Officials urged calm and asked the public to allow the investigation to proceed.
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