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The Independent
an hour ago
- Politics
- The Independent
‘A crisis boiling over': The Essex community divided over violent migrant protests
As smoke flares filled the air amid violent protests and heavy-handed clashes with police, the historic market town of Epping found itself at the centre of intense media attention – for all the wrong reasons. Just two days after the latest demonstration, which saw hundreds gather outside the Bell Hotel in Essex, which is believed to house asylum seekers, the mood has substantially quietened. But locals remain divided over the events that sparked the unrest that has plagued the former royal hunting ground for the past 10 days. While many who have protested against the use of migrant hotels have remained peaceful, holding signs reading 'I'm worried about my kids', others had different intentions, with smoke flares thrown towards police vans and eight officers in riot gear being forced to retreat, injured. Describing it as a 'crisis that has reached boiling point', the local Conservative MP Dr Neil Hudson has called for the dilapidated Bell Hotel to close. He said: 'This is a crisis that is boiling over and for the safety of our community, the government must get a grip on this situation now, and they must listen and act quickly to close the hotel. I continue to call on the government to immediately close the Bell Hotel, and I have raised this urgently in the House of Commons Chamber.' The violence was sparked when Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, a 38-year-old Ethiopian asylum seeker reportedly living there, was charged with three counts of sexual assault after allegedly attempting to kiss a 14-year-old girl. He denied the charges at Chelmsford magistrates' court last Thursday and has been remanded in custody. But his court appearance failed to dampen local outrage. Around 1,000 people gathered outside the 79-room hotel on Sunday, with six people arrested and bottles thrown towards police. On Tuesday, the key indicator of recent unrest is the large metal barrier now surrounding the hotel, with warning signs against taking pictures or videos. Police officers are still stationed at the site, and a passerby stops to scan the windows for any sign of life inside. Among them is Craig, a 24-year-old local who helped organise the protests last week. Speaking from his car, he insists that the demonstrations were organised to protect local children, and this is not a race issue. 'I think it's unfair to label us as racist or far-right,' he said. 'I've never been to a protest in my life until the last three weeks. It's not so much about race, it's about the people who came. On Sunday, there were all sorts of races here protesting.' A father himself, he added that the protests were for the children's 'future', and called for migrants to enter the UK through a legal route. Describing the protests as 'mostly peaceful', he said: 'I organised the protests through word of mouth mostly. Obviously, once we'd done the first one, that was it – word of mouth spread and it was every Thursday and every Sunday.' It has now been rumoured that those residing at the hotel will now be moved to another part of London, with reports that another demonstration is planned for this weekend, with far-right leader Tommy Robinson potentially in attendance. But not all those who have stopped outside the hotel are anti-immigration. One man on a motorbike stops to call to a young man entering the hotel, to offer him the town's apologies. Another retired man, who wished to remain anonymous, had travelled from south London to visit the hotel after reading reports of the protests in the news. 'My father was Polish, so he came over in the war, so I do have a connection with people coming over to this country for reasons that are good, bad, and indifferent,' he said. 'But I do think we have closed the stable door after the horse has bolted.' He added that he had not been surprised to see the rioting, and added: 'It's not the kind of thing you expect in Epping, because it's a bit middle class and conservative. But whether it's the right place to put people who are waiting to be processed, I don't know.' Walking into the town centre, the incident remains a divisive topic. Speaking outside a bus stop, one couple simply responds: "It's been a fuss over nothing, media making it out to be a bigger deal than it is." Outside a newsagent's, a man describes the refugee hotel as a 'nightmare' and scoffs at the mention of the recent demonstrations. Others said they felt afraid of the possibility of further violence. One elderly couple, who did not wish to be named, said they had decided to rearrange a visit from their grandchildren in order to keep them away from any potential riots. 'It's meant to be to save our children, and yet my grandchildren can't come to the house,' she said. 'I think it's very disturbing. I've lived in Epping a long time, and I've never had hate near me like this. 'I knew as soon as I heard about it that it was going to have a snowball effect. I have never had any trouble from the refugees here.' She described Epping as a town 'still divided by Brexit' but added that while residents were far from united on the issue, she believed many involved in the violence had travelled in from elsewhere. 'Epping is a lovely town,' she said. 'But I think this has damaged its reputation. Today is the first day it feels peaceful since the riots started.' One particular concern for residents has been protesters travelling in from afar, deliberately to participate in violence. Speaking to The Independent, Craig said: 'A lot of people come from out of area, as long as you're coming for the right reasons, then anyone is welcome.' Meanwhile, the charity Hope Not Hate has said it has identified several individuals connected to the far-right in attendance. Its CEO Nick Lowles said: 'The allegations of sexual assault are deeply worrying, and the people of Epping are right to be concerned about this case. A man has been arrested and it's vital that the legal process is allowed to run its course. 'The events in Epping are a symptom of a recurring trend within the far right: co-opting the high emotions of local people to whip up hatred. The far right demonise and vilify all migrants, including the other innocent residents at the hotel, creating a climate of hatred and hatred locally. Sadly, violence is the result. 'The far-right is seeking to sow division in the local area, which does nothing to assist the victims of sexual abuse.' Local Conservative MP, Neil Hudson, said the scenes on Thursday and Sunday night were 'deeply troubling and unsettling', and he condemned the violence as 'completely unacceptable'. 'Police put themselves in harm's way to keep us safe. People quite rightly have the right to peaceful protest, but these violent scenes are not us, they are not Epping, and they are not what we stand for. It is deeply disturbing that people from outside Epping are coming to these protests not to support the real concerns of our local community, but to disrupt and cause violence.' He continued: 'As I said previously, I am deeply disturbed by the alleged sexual assaults in Epping the week before last, and my thoughts are with the victims, their families, and their peers.'
BBC News
5 hours ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Epping asylum hotel protests sees one man appear in court
A 51-year-old man has appeared before magistrates charged with violent disorder outside a hotel housing asylum took place outside The Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, on Thursday and Sunday, where police officers were injured during worker Dean Smith of Madells in Epping was charged with one offence of using or threatening the use of unlawful entered no plea at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court and was remanded in custody to appear at the city's crown court in August. District Judge Christopher Williams was told of a WhatsApp group with 600 members who were planning to attend the of people gathered on Thursday, with a smaller group of people holding a pro-refugee demonstration at the same Connor, representing the Crown Prosecution Service, told the court the gathering of those opposing the housing of asylum seekers was initially peaceful, but "quickly escalated" into violent disorder, with fireworks, eggs and bottles being than 100 police officers attended, Ms Connor said, and officers became "overwhelmed" by the Conner said Mr Smith - who works full-time for Waitrose - had attended the protest on Thursday and returned on the Sunday, when he was arrested after being identified on several pieces of Mr Smith, Richard Moughton said his client had attended for a "peaceful protest", and on the Thursday he had returned home before a police dispersal order was put in is due to appear for a plea hearing at Chelmsford Crown Court on 18 August. Another protest staged on Sunday was attended by more than 1,000 people, with projectiles thrown towards police vans blocking the hotel Smith is the second person to appear before magistrates in connection with protests at the Silk, 33, of Torrington Drive in Loughton, Essex, appeared before Southend Magistrates' Court on Monday to deny violent disorder, but entered no plea to another charge of criminally damaging a sign at the hotel by shaking was released on conditional bail, forbidding him from entering Epping and attending any protest in the UK, and will also appear before Chelmsford Crown Court on 18 demonstrations followed a man living in the hotel being charged with sexual assault, harassment and inciting a girl to engage in sexual Kebatu, 41, from Ethiopia, has denied the offences and was remanded in custody during a hearing on Conservative MPs in Essex - Neil Hudson and Alex Burghart - called for the hotel to be closed, while the Tory leader of Epping Forest District Council, Chris Whitbread, described it as a "powder keg" situation. Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
South Wales Guardian
14 hours ago
- Politics
- South Wales Guardian
Women facing ‘public safety crisis' as a result of immigration, Tories claim
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp also said the public are 'rightly sick of this illegal immigrant crime wave', but added 'violent protests' are not justified. It comes after six people were arrested following a protest outside an Essex hotel believed to house asylum seekers. A series of protests have taken place outside the Bell Hotel in Epping since 38-year-old asylum seeker Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu was charged with sexual assault after an incident where he is alleged to have attempted to kiss a 14-year-old girl. He denied the charge when he appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court on Thursday. Home Office minister Dame Diana Johnson said it is 'vital that the criminal justice procedures are able to run their course'. She added that the Government takes any allegation of sexual assault 'incredibly serious', and it is changing the law to ensure those convicted of sexual offence are not granted asylum. In an urgent question, Mr Philp claimed 'this year has been by far the worst ever' for immigration, with 23,000 migrants crossing the Channel so far. He added: 'Numbers in asylum hotels are now higher than at the time of the election. This is a border security crisis, but it is also a public safety crisis, especially for women and girls. 'Many nationalities crossing, for example, Afghans commit up to 20 times more sex offences than average. Louise Casey made that point in her report, and now we have press reporting on the huge scale of the crime committed by illegal immigrants housed in the Government's own asylum hotels.' Mr Philp continued: 'Those crimes included multiple cases of rape, sexual assault, violence, theft and arson, including the case in Epping she referred to where a 38-year-old Ethiopian man has been charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl. 'An illegal immigrant in Oxford has been convicted of raping a 20-year-old woman in a churchyard. A Sudanese man was convicted of strangling and attempting to rape a woman in a nightclub toilet in Wakefield. 'Now violent protest in response to those appalling crimes is never justified. The public, though, are rightly sick of this illegal immigrant crime wave. It has to end.' He urged the minister to 'record and publish the immigration status of all offenders', and to close the hotel in Epping. Dame Diana replied: 'Any allegation of crime or sexual assault is incredibly serious, including by individuals in the asylum system, and it is to be treated so by the authorities and treated so by this Government.' She had earlier told the Commons: 'In the first year this Government has been in office, 5,179 foreign national criminals were removed from the UK – a 14% increase on the previous year. 'That is important progress, but we want to go further. We are changing the law in the Border Security Bill to ensure individuals convicted of any registered sexual offence are not granted asylum. 'We are legislating to allow for the tagging of any migrant considered to pose a threat to public safety or national security, as well as strengthening our crackdown on illegal working, but we must go further to end hotel use.'
Telegraph
a day ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
‘We can't walk safely day or night': How an Essex town reached boiling point over a migrant hotel
Epping Forest. Ancient woodland, historic royal hunting ground, Site of Special Scientific Interest – and now the latest violent flashpoint between police and protesters over the incendiary issue of migrant hotels. At its centre is The Bell Hotel, where ugly scenes have played out after 38-year-old Ethiopian asylum seeker Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu was arrested and charged with three counts of sexual assault after an incident in which he is alleged to have tried to kiss a 14-year-old girl. He denied the charge when he appeared at Chelmsford magistrates' court and has been remanded in custody. Meanwhile the focus of local outrage has been the Bell, a 79-room hotel believed to house asylum seekers. Last Sunday, violence erupted at a protest which saw more than 1,000 people gather outside the hotel, leading to six arrests, after bottles and smoke flares were thrown towards police vehicles. This was the fourth demonstration in just nine days. Some were peaceful, others less so; eight police sustained injuries in clashes last Thursday, and six people were arrested yesterday. Whilst many who have taken to the streets seem intent on airing their discontent in an orderly manner – carrying banners bearing slogans such as 'Make Epping Safe Again' and 'I'm not far-Right, I'm worried about my kids' – others appear to have had less honourable intentions. The weekend's demonstrations were polluted by some far-Right rabble rousers as well as counter-protesters, who weighed in, some wearing balaclavas, under the banner of 'anti-racism'. Nigel Farage, the Reform leader, has blamed 'bad eggs' from the anti-fascist group Antifa and 'far-Right thugs' for the ugly scenes of unrest. After the drama of police lining up in riot gear, today marks the calm after the storm. But in truth it is just a temporary lull: another demonstration is planned for the weekend coming. Locals do not appear to endorse angry clashes – everyone I talk to insists that peaceful protest is the only way forward – but a mood of resentment is fomenting amid feelings of frustration and fear. 'I have a 12-year-old daughter who is now on holiday for six weeks – I can't let her out knowing there are predators on the street,' says one 44-year-old construction boss, out walking his beagle at lunchtime. 'But why should she have to be kept indoors while a load of foreigners walk free? 'I'm not a racist, I have friends who are Asian, friends who are black. This is about the fact that successive governments have poured taxpayers' money into providing for people who enter our country illegally and then commit crimes. Right now nobody seems to be entering, or leaving, the Bell. Security guards in the hotel's foyer have reportedly instructed those believed to be being housed there not to speak to the press. The area is still reeling from the media glare. A well-to-do area of smart £571,000 terraced houses, detached properties and pricey villas – a four-bed converted barn is currently on the market for £1.25 million – it boasts excellent links to the city by rail and Underground. No small wonder, then, that it is highly attractive to couples with young families in search of bigger homes and better schools, surrounded by the acres of green space inner-city dwellers can only dream of. Amid the lovingly-tended gardens and smart cars in gated driveways, The Bell Hotel is a shabby-looking edifice well past its prime, despite the sign reading 'Banqueting Suite & Conference Rooms'. A long, low, modern accommodation block is concealed behind a hedge. Fencing has been erected in the car park to block off the building and numerous notices read 'This Hotel is closed for (sic) general public'. Its TripAdvisor rating remains online however; a dismal 2.7. Judging by the reviews, there appear to have been no new guests since August 2021 but someone calling themselves Roving22251070829 has added a comment on July 18 to reflect the high emotions outside the premises. 'Infested. Disgusting. Unsafe,' it reads. 'The owners have sold their souls. Avoid at all costs, especially if you have children. Check recent news.' What recent news will do for the wider reputation of Epping remains to be seen. But the beauty of the surroundings, where deer and heritage English longhorns roam at will, is incontestable. Incongruously, right across the road stands a corner of forest, edged with silver birch and oak, field elm. and briars heavy with early blackberries. 'We moved out of the inner city for a quieter pace of life, but the riots are a reminder of the terrible problems Britain has at a national level,' says one mother, pushing a buggy, who prefers not to be named. 'Something needs to be done about random hotels full of asylum seekers being dumped in residential areas. It's a crazy idea.' Crazy maybe, but increasingly a fact of life for communities across the country. Indeed, the cost of housing migrants has tripled to £4m a day as new arrivals continue to make it to Britain's shores at pace. There were 38,000 migrants housed in hotels as of the end of last year, and a further 66,000 asylum seekers in 'dispersed accommodation', predominantly made up of self-catering houses and flats. It would be easy to lambast locals in places such as Epping as racist. Easy but unfair – and deeply unhelpful. Truthfully, who amongst us would want to live next to a hotel, housing dozens of displaced individuals, overwhelmingly male, without employment, milling around day after day without purpose? 'Me and my sister went to the first protest on Sunday the 13th, which had a lovely, family atmosphere,' a grandmother in her 70s tells me. 'We were quite open, saying we were there for the children and had no other agenda about race or religion. Our only aim was to protect our children. 'Now it's all kicking off. I won't be attending another, which is a shame, as the more of us who voice our unhappiness, the better.' Many commentators have described the events at The Bell Hotel as having come out of the blue. But that's not the full story. In April of this year, mother of three Orla Minihane, a Reform candidate for Epping and Theydon Bois, raised the issue of the believed migrant hotel at a council meeting – and was ejected for her troubles. Her apprehensions have proved to be prescient, but Minihane, who has spearheaded the peaceful protests, said the main focus now was conveying that demonstrators had legitimate concerns, and did not care about the race of the asylum seekers in the hotel. 'I wouldn't care if they were from Iceland, blonde, blue-eyed and Christian. At the end of the day they're strange men who nobody has checked,' she says. Minihane also unequivocally condemned the violence saying, 'we get branded as far-Right thugs', which takes focus away from the fact that 'the sexual abuse of young girls is not a Right or Left issue – it's a moral issue'. That sentiment is echoed throughout the town. For Patricia Martin, a 63-year-old former admin assistant, there is a deep disconnect between what happens in Westminster and what is taking place in the country as a whole. 'We don't know who these men are, we know nothing about their history or what terrible situation they may have escaped and the effect on their mental health,' she says. 'And we are expected to just let them into our town to wander freely around? The politicians who let this happen don't live like us, they use private healthcare and don't know or care about the impact this has on us.' She tells me about a friend of hers, a mother of four who has been homeless for nine years and has spent that time being shunted from one shabby local-authority-funded bed and breakfast to another. 'How come she has nobody on her side while a bunch of illegal immigrants only have to turn up to be given a roof over their heads? This country should start by looking after its own.' Similar views can be heard in other British towns home to migrant hotels. 'I don't think anybody in London even understands just how close we are to civil disobedience on a vast scale in this country,' Farage said on Monday. 'But do I understand how people in Epping feel? You bet your life I do.' Martin's cousin, Teresa Mann, 45, gives a shudder at the mention of the recent alleged assaults. As a mother, she is incensed that The Bell Hotel is so close to the local secondary school. 'These men come from other countries, other cultures where they have other attitudes towards women and girls,' she says. 'Siting any sort of accommodation near a school shows how little this problem has been thought through. 'If people come over here they should be put in a place where they can be monitored, their cases looked at quickly and then immediately sent packing if they have no right to be here. Yes they may be fleeing war or whatever but that is no excuse to go about abusing young girls.' Chris Whitbread, the Conservative leader of Epping Forest District Council, said the local authority had opposed plans for a migrant hotel in the area. The next demonstration, again led by Minihane, is due to take place next Sunday in front of the hotel. Before then she has challenged the authorities to be more transparent about who is being housed there and what is the plan for them going forward. 'A lack of transparency on the part of the authorities has increased tensions; if you withhold information, you make people suspicious,' she says, adding that the sight of women standing shoulder to shoulder will send a powerful signal to the government. 'Right now we can't walk safely in our community day or night,' says Minihane, who has lived in the area since she was 12 years old. 'Our message is that we live here – it's our right to be safe.'
Sydney Morning Herald
a day ago
- Politics
- Sydney Morning Herald
It's a picture-perfect English town. Now an asylum seeker war is ripping it apart
'I'm afraid I agree that the government has got to find some other means of housing the people once they arrive.' Also like many in this town, he believes the protests are out of control. In his view, the police should be using their powers to arrest anyone trying to hide their identity at the protests. Six men were arrested on Sunday night for what Essex Police called 'mindless thuggery' – including injury to a police officer and damage to a vehicle. Witnesses saw a protestor kick in the windscreen of a police car. Epping, the last stop on the Central Line for those heading north-west on the London Underground, now looks like a war zone to Britons watching the news. But it is a comfortable town with no history of heated division – until the asylum hotel arrived. At lunchtime on Monday, for instance, the main street was busy with people in a dozen cafes or at an open-air market with arts and crafts. A few Porsches, Mercedes-Benzes and Range Rovers passed along with the local traffic. The jewellery store displayed a Rolex in its front window. But the mood has changed in Epping since one of the asylum seekers was charged with three counts of sexual assault, one count of inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity and one count of harassment without violence. The man, Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, from Ethiopia, denied all the offences when he appeared in court on July 10. This has not quelled the concerns among local parents, who began protesting outside the asylum hotel. 'I'm not far-right. I'm worried about my kids,' said one sign on Sunday, held by six women outside the asylum hotel. The sexual assault charges turned a tidal wave of concern into a tsunami, says Epping journalist David Jackman, who covered the region for local newspapers for 38 years before setting up his own news site, Everything Epping Forest. There were at least two fires at asylum hotels in the area in recent years and one man who was staying at the Bell Hotel will stand trial in September, charged with two counts of arson. Jackman, in a written account of the past few weeks, said the protest on Sunday night required police with riot shields to hold the line against protesters throwing plastic bottles, eggs, milk and other objects. 'Video footage now seen around the world shows unbelievable scenes including a protestor jumping up and down on the roof of a moving police van and a man kicking another police vehicle,' he wrote. In an echo of the Australian debate over the past two decades, the UK is struggling to respond to thousands of people arriving by boat. While French police can wade into water to try to stop the boats leaving, they do not venture into the English Channel to turn them around. British authorities intercept the boats to escort them to Dover – a sight that infuriates right-wing critics such as Nigel Farage, head of Reform UK. The arrivals surged to 19,982 in the six months to the end of June – up 50 per cent on the same period last year, according to a tally by Reuters based on government data. The problem is not new; boat arrivals increased when the Conservatives held power from 2010 to 2024, but it has become toxic in local communities because authorities have taken over hotels and motels to house asylum seekers. Some Epping residents simply fall silent when the subject comes up. Others express their anxiety about right-wing activists using Epping to make headlines. Loading 'It is outrageous, irresponsible and preposterous to assert and even suggest that residence of Epping and Epping Forest were at all violent last night,' wrote Glenn Hernandez, a local resident, on the community Facebook group. He and others want the hotel shut down and the asylum seekers relocated to prevent more clashes. For now, the Bell Hotel is closed to visitors and surrounded by a temporary fence. Signs order passers-by not to take photographs. A security guard stands inside the entrance. Holland, who lives close to the hotel and sees the asylum seekers walking to and from their temporary home, believes the protests must be kept away from the Bell Hotel to avoid greater riots in the weeks to come. 'There's no point in protesting outside the hotel,' he says. 'If they're going to have a protest, have it in the town centre and make it an organised protest to keep the thugs away from the hotel.' correspondents .
