"Thuggery on tour' Violence in Plymouth blamed on outsiders

As rioters hurled bricks, bottles and fireworks in a frenzy of violence in Plymouth, on Monday, members of the local mosque were taking no chances.

- Caroline Davies

Riots, which have scarred so many communities in the past week, broke out on the high street as 150 officers in riot gear and with dogs sought to keep apart far-right anti-migrant protesters and Stand up to Racism demonstrators in the city centre.

Battles were fought near shops in Royal Parade opposite the Guildhall and the surrounding area in what one senior officer described as "sustained violence".

Just 15 minutes walk away, members of the local mosque were braced. About 50 to 60 members had turned up to protect the Plymouth Islamic Education Trust (Piety) building, which houses the mosque where 1,000 people regularly attend Friday prayers, said the director of the centre, Mohamed Muganzi.

Muganzi added: "They came of their own volition because they were worried enough about what might happen. They had seen what had happened elsewhere." Last week someone smashed the door to the centre, an act captured on CCTV, and which Muganzi said he believed had been motivated by what was happening in other towns. On Monday, Piety hired private security.