BRITAIN'S VIOLENT RIOT CLAIMS SHOOTING DEATH
By
Jim Kouri, CPP
August 23, 2011
NewsWithViews.com
"No longer content with simply burglarizing and mugging the decent law abiding working classes that have the misfortune to dwell amongst them, they have now decided to torch and terrorize the very communities they come from. What we are witnessing in London and in other cities across Britain at the moment is an attack upon the decent and law abiding citizenry of the country." - British social commentator Winston Smith.
The violent and destructive riot that's plaguing the United Kingdom since the weekend has now claimed its first mortally wounded Londoner Tuesday, after the man was shot while in his automobile during the civil unrest. The shooting victim died in a hospital emergency room in London.
The ongoing rampage by thousands of rioters began in London, but it's now sweeping the country, according to a source with the Metropolitan Police Service.
Police reported that the 26-year-old male shooting victim was discovered in a car Monday night in the London suburb of Croydon as the rioting spread into suburban areas. The MPS source said young motorist suffered from multiple gun shot wounds.
While so far only one death has been officially reported, there are hundreds of people, including police officers, who are listed as riot casualties and the destruction and violence spread from the capital city of London to other major British cities.
As of yesterday, 48 officers have been injured having experienced unprecedented violence directed at them as they have been policing London, striving to protect the public, local communities and property.
Many officers are still undergoing hospital treatment, some requiring surgery. Injuries range from fractured bones, serious head injuries, concussion, cuts and sprains, even injured eyes from smashed and thrown glass.
Officers have been attacked with bricks, bottles, planks of wood and other missiles. In some incidents, officers have been hit by motor vehicles, seriously risking their lives and those of the public.
"If these people lived in an oppressive police state or didn't have the generous welfare state we have then I could understand them rising up. This has nothing to do with being genuine victims of oppression or actual real poverty. It is about blatant greed, criminality and hyper consumerism nothing else. This is not [Britain] in the 1980s when there were genuine grievances that needed addressing. It is thuggery plain and simple," British social commentator Winston Smith, author of the book Generation F.
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"No longer content with simply burglaring and mugging the decent law abiding working classes that have the misfortune to dwell amongst them, they have now decided to torch and terrorize the very communities they come from. What we are witnessing in London and in other cities across Britain at the moment is an attack upon the decent and law abiding citizenry of the country," stated Smith.
Police also investigated a large fire at Reeves Furniture store in Reeves Corner, Croydon, as part of the disorder in the area on Monday and officers arrested a man in connection with that arson.
Detectives from Operation Withern arrested the 21-year-old Tuesday evening and he is being held at a south London police station, according to a report obtained by the Law Enforcement Examiner. The man was arrested and charged suspicion of arson with the intent to endanger life.
The civil unrest began Saturday when peaceful protesters assembled with relatives of 29-year-old Mark Duggan -- the man shot to death by police last Thursday night during a police raid in the Tottenham district of London -- but the peaceful demonstration erupted into a violent uprising when other groups joined the demonstration.
According to the Law Enforcement Examiner's London source, hooded people, many of them teenagers, ransacked and looted shops, torched cars, and set buildings on fire. They also attacked police officers with rocks, pieces of concrete, bottles, and illegal fireworks. As of yesterday, the rioting spread to other cities including Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester.
A total of 685 arrests have been made in connection with the incidents of disorder seen across London in the last few days. Of those,111 individuals have been charged.
Five police dogs have been injured as they have undertaken their duties in dealing with the unrest. Linpol Luke, also known as Obi, sustained a serious head injury from a thrown brick and requires further treatment. Marshfield Mia was injured after being hit by a thrown bottle. Both dogs were injured on duty on Sunday. On Monday, Minstrel Blaze, Quirk Ruby and Zach all sustained injuries, including broken teeth and cuts from thrown missiles, police sources stated.
Mounted section officers have played a vital role and after successive shifts facing hostile crowds the officers and their horses are tired yet no injuries have been sustained and they will continue to play their part in keeping London safe, according to an MPS statement.
The British Prime Minister, David Cameron, promised more stringent anti-rioting procedures would be used by police officers if the indiscriminate violence continued.
During a televised briefing, PM Cameron described what he termed the "sickening scenes" caused by the rioters. He said the violent uprising was "criminality pure and simple."
The Prime Minister, who chaired a meeting of the national disaster management committee, known as the "Cobra Committee," at his Downing Street office, also said he would recall the Parliament from its summer recess on Thursday, so that he could make a statement regarding the rioting.
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All leave for police and security personnel was canceled, according to Cameron, who pledged to bring in reinforcements from around the country. Ten thousand extra police officers are expected to be deployed in London, bringing the total number to 16,000.
There was even talk of using the British military should the rioting become more deadly and destructive. The British army is well-known for its counterinsurgency tactics and its ability at waging urban warfare, said the MPS source. But that would be a last resort scenario, he added.
� 2011 Jim Kouri- All Rights Reserved
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