<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0"
     xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
     xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
     xmlns:admin="http://webns.net/mvcb/"
     xmlns:rdf="http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#"
     xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
     xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/">
<channel>
<title>Free World Social &#45; : NEWS</title>
<link>https://freeworldsocial.org/rss/category/news-14</link>
<description>Free World Social &#45; : NEWS</description>
<dc:language>en</dc:language>
<dc:rights>2026 Free World Social Network</dc:rights>

<item>
<title>Huge fire tears through historic mill featured in Downton Abbey and Peaky Blinders</title>
<link>https://freeworldsocial.org/huge-fire-tears-through-historic-mill-featured-in-downton-abbey-and-peaky-blinders</link>
<guid>https://freeworldsocial.org/huge-fire-tears-through-historic-mill-featured-in-downton-abbey-and-peaky-blinders</guid>
<description><![CDATA[ A massive fire engulfed an historic mill in Yorkshire last night which has featured in hit TV shows including Peaky Blinders and Downton Abbey.The Grade II-listed former Dalton Mills in Keighley has served as a filming location for the two British-favourite shows - but on Saturday, flames were seen tearing through the roof of the building, casting an orange glow across the night sky.Smoke was visible from miles away after the blaze started at roughly 8pm.West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue confirmed that 12 fire engines were deployed to tackle the inferno.
TRENDING

Stories
Videos
Your Say




Dozens of firefighters rushed to the scene as the fire continued to spread.Nearby residents were being evacuated due to the severity of the incident.One witness described the scene after spotting thick smoke pouring from the disused mill while driving along the nearby A650.They told the Telegraph and Argus: &quot;I was driving down the A650 and I could just see all this smoke.&quot;I pulled over to have a look and I couldn&#039;t believe the size of the fire.&quot;It&#039;s unbelievable.&quot;The mill dates back to 1869 - but has been struck by a series of significant fires over recent years.It was once claimed to be the largest textile mill in Yorkshire, and hosted 2,000 employees at the height of the Industrial Revolution.FIRE CARNAGE - READ MORE:Birmingham&#039;s first halal food hall burns down just six months after openingDozens feared dead after ferry carrying 134 people bursts into flames off coast of PhilippinesNottingham bus engulfed in flames as firefighters rush to scene to extinguish raging infernoBut, thanks to the decline of Britain&#039;s textile industry, the mill was practically empty up until 2004.The first fire hit in 2011, followed by a major blaze in March 2022 that required over 100 firefighters and 20 engines.A further fire hit the site in July 2025, again requiring 12 fire engines.West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue warned that the scale of the blaze posed a potential risk to those living nearby.WYFR said: &quot;Due to the severity of the incident and the potential risk to residents a number of nearby residents are now being evacuated.&quot;Local authority emergency planning officers arrived on scene to assist those affected.The fire service added: &quot;Local Authority Emergency Planning officers are on scene and are providing support and guidance to those affected by the evacuation.&quot;If you are impacted, Local Authority Emergency Planning teams will communicate directly with you and provide further information and advice.&quot;We would like to thank residents for their cooperation and patience while our crews continue to tackle this incident.&quot;Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter ]]></description>
<enclosure url="https://assets.rbl.ms/67767759/origin.png" length="49398" type="image/jpeg"/>
<pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 01:47:12 +0100</pubDate>
<dc:creator>fwstaff</dc:creator>
<media:keywords>Huge, fire, tears, through, historic, mill, featured, Downton, Abbey, and, Peaky, Blinders</media:keywords>
</item>

<item>
<title>&amp;apos;Unknown substance thrown at teen&amp;apos; near major UK shopping centre as victim left with life&#45;changing injuries</title>
<link>https://freeworldsocial.org/unknown-substance-thrown-at-teen-near-major-uk-shopping-centre-as-victim-left-with-life-changing-injuries</link>
<guid>https://freeworldsocial.org/unknown-substance-thrown-at-teen-near-major-uk-shopping-centre-as-victim-left-with-life-changing-injuries</guid>
<description><![CDATA[ A teenager has suffered &quot;potentially life-changing injuries&quot; after police said an &quot;unknown substance&quot; was thrown at him.Emergency responders rushed to Arndale Shopping Centre in Manchester this evening.Greater Manchester Police have arrested a 19-year-old man on suspicion of assault.He remains in custody.
TRENDING

Stories
Videos
Your Say




The force said the incident followed a &quot;verbal altercation&quot;.The victim was described as being in his &quot;mid-teens&quot; but has not been named.Greater Manchester Police said: &quot;At 6.10pm this evening, we were called to an ongoing disturbance at Exchange Square in the city centre.&quot;Officers arrived at the scene and established that an individual has had an unknown substance thrown at them following a verbal altercation.&quot;The force added: &quot;The victim, a male in his mid-teens has received an injury that has been described as not life-threatening but potentially life-changing.&quot;A 19-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of assault and remains in custody.&quot;They added that the investigations are currently ongoing.Police have urged anyone with more information to contact them.Withy Grove was closed in both directions.Traffic around the shopping centre was reported.Officers cordoned off the scene.The road has since re-opened.Our Standards:        The GB News Editorial Charter ]]></description>
<enclosure url="https://assets.rbl.ms/67767572/origin.jpg" length="49398" type="image/jpeg"/>
<pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 01:47:12 +0100</pubDate>
<dc:creator>fwstaff</dc:creator>
<media:keywords>Unknown, substance, thrown, teen, near, major, shopping, centre, victim, left, with, life-changing, injuries</media:keywords>
</item>

<item>
<title>Saffie Osborne makes history as first woman to win a British Classic</title>
<link>https://freeworldsocial.org/saffie-osborne-makes-history-as-first-woman-to-win-a-british-classic</link>
<guid>https://freeworldsocial.org/saffie-osborne-makes-history-as-first-woman-to-win-a-british-classic</guid>
<description><![CDATA[ Saffie Osborne etched her name into the record books at Doncaster as she became the first woman to ride the winner of a British Flat racing Classic.The 24-year-old steered 11-1-shot Highwayman to a commanding victory in the St Leger.The triumph came on a day of particular significance for the race, which was celebrating its 250th anniversary as the world&#039;s oldest Classic on the Flat.No female jockey had previously won any of the five British Flat Classics - the 1,000 Guineas, 2,000 Guineas, Oaks, Derby or St Leger - making Osborne&#039;s achievement in the season&#039;s final Classic all the more incredible.
TRENDING

Stories
Videos
Your Say




Reacting to her incredible success, Osborne said: &quot;I&#039;m in shock! I burst into tears!&quot;I was in front and I knew I hadn&#039;t seen anyone from two out and then I felt Billy [Loughnane, on Enceladus] come to my girth, but he went again and going across the line.&quot;I&#039;ve never celebrated before, as I&#039;ve never won a race good enough to celebrate, but to win that was incredible.&quot;Osborne explained she &quot;had a really good feeling&quot; ahead of the day and used that as momentum in the race.LATEST SPORTS NEWSPremier League round-up as three games ending in draws as Chelsea held by Hull and Forest beat VillaTottenham play out 0-0 draw with Everton as Spurs go four league games without a goalJakob Ingebrigtsen pulls out of 1500m showdown with Josh KerrShe continued: &quot;You are always quite hesitant to say that, as most of the time you are wrong. &quot;I&#039;m just in shock, I didn&#039;t have that on my bingo card for the week, I didn&#039;t have a ride in the Leger this time last week.&quot;I found out on Tuesday; it just appeared on my booked rides, and I thought: &#039;Oh, I&#039;ve got a ride in the Leger - oh jeez, I&#039;ve got quite a good ride in the Leger.&#039;&quot;Osborne was presented with her prize by Princess Anne, as she became the first female winner in 250 years.Describing how the race panned out, Osborne said: &quot;I was more forward than I&#039;d planned to be, but he travelled so beautifully I didn&#039;t mind hitting the front sooner than planned if I was going to hit the front.&quot;But he kept going well, and he&#039;s obviously trained by an absolute master in Joseph [O&#039;Brien].&quot;It was just a real honour to even pick up the ride, never mind win a Classic. &quot;It&#039;s something we all want to do, but did I think at the start of the year I was going to win a Classic?&quot;Absolutely not. I think I&#039;m going to start crying again now.&quot;Osborne continued: &quot;When I saw it was the 250th year, I thought, &#039;surely there has to be a good story this year&#039;, and I just thought a girl winning it was quite a nice one after 250 years.&quot;This is the kind of thing that changes your life; no one can take it away from you. I still can&#039;t believe it.&quot;Our Standards:        The GB News Editorial Charter ]]></description>
<enclosure url="https://assets.rbl.ms/67767531/origin.jpg" length="49398" type="image/jpeg"/>
<pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 01:47:12 +0100</pubDate>
<dc:creator>fwstaff</dc:creator>
<media:keywords>Saffie, Osborne, makes, history, first, woman, win, British, Classic</media:keywords>
</item>

<item>
<title>Thousands of electric bikes seized as councils vent anger over &amp;apos;irresponsibly&amp;apos; blocked paths</title>
<link>https://freeworldsocial.org/thousands-of-electric-bikes-seized-as-councils-vent-anger-over-irresponsibly-blocked-paths</link>
<guid>https://freeworldsocial.org/thousands-of-electric-bikes-seized-as-councils-vent-anger-over-irresponsibly-blocked-paths</guid>
<description><![CDATA[ London councils have confiscated around 3,400 dockless e-bikes so far in 2026, already exceeding last year&#039;s total by 23 per cent, a new investigation has found.California-headquartered Lime, the capital&#039;s largest rental ebike operator, was responsible for more than 2,000 of those seizures. Forest came second with 978, while Voi trailed at 103.The figures, obtained by the Guardian, came from responses by 19 reporting authorities across the 21 boroughs with dockless bike contracts, plus the City of London. 
TRENDING

Stories
Videos
Your Say




Nine of those authorities reported no seizures or fines, and three failed to respond or said they did not hold the relevant data.Dockless ebikes now account for roughly one in 10 of London&#039;s estimated 1.5 million daily cycling trips, TfL figures suggest.Campaigners warn that the growing number of abandoned bikes on pavements is severely affecting some of the city&#039;s most vulnerable residents. Camden councillor James Slater described the regulatory landscape across the capital as a &quot;jigsaw puzzle&quot; and called for a unified London-wide approach.He said: &quot;It&#039;s very difficult for 32 councils in London to all have slightly different policies, and in some cases different operators on borough boundaries.&quot;Mr Slater pointed to specific disruptions in his borough, including ebikes dumped in residents&#039; parking bays and blocking roads.He added: &quot;During the solar eclipse we had swarms of ebikes around Primrose Hill and Hampstead Heath. The operators have a responsibility to make sure the bikes are not causing a public nuisance.&quot;Hire companies have pushed back, arguing that councils are failing to invest adequately in dedicated parking bays, which they say would reduce the accumulation of poorly parked bikes on footways.LATEST DEVELOPMENTSMan killed in 17th-floor London flat fire as child and tenants rescuedThree Jewish schoolboys assaulted while travelling on London busFour rushed to hospital after quadruple stabbing in Bromley as emergency crews swarm high streetThe English devolution bill, which became law in April, grants TfL new powers to license dockless ebike operators and impose standards on parking, safety and accessibility across the capital.The authority is expected to use these powers to establish a single regulatory framework covering all of London&#039;s boroughs.A spokesman for the mayor&#039;s office said it was working with TfL and the Department for Transport on the secondary legislation needed to bring in &quot;much-needed controls as quickly as possible.&quot;They added: &quot;It’s vital that safety improvements sit at the heart of any future regulation to ensure the industry can continue to thrive. The mayor continues to urge all dockless operators to fully engage with London boroughs and TfL to ensure their services work well for all Londoners.&quot;A spokesman for Lime argued that the fact that it is the biggest ebike operator in London should be taken into account when considering the number of its bikes seized, adding that these incidents mostly occurred at overcrowded parking bays.They told the Guardian: &quot;The vast majority of our riders end their trips responsibly, and a very small proportion of total rides result in seizures and fines by councils. We recognise that parking is a challenge across the industry largely due to ebike parking not keeping pace with growing demand for rental ebike services.&quot;Forest also said the number of designated parking bays had not kept pace with demand, adding that it was “working close with boroughs to encourage responsible parking and ensure our service works for everyone”.A Voi spokesman said: &quot;Voi vehicles should never be parked in a way that blocks access routes, lift areas, pavements, entrances or emergency routes. We recognise the particular impact poor parking can have on disabled people, parents with pushchairs and people using mobility aids, and we take reports of obstruction seriously.&quot;GB News has approached Lime, Forest and Voi for further comment.Our Standards:        The GB News Editorial Charter ]]></description>
<enclosure url="https://assets.rbl.ms/67767683/origin.jpg" length="49398" type="image/jpeg"/>
<pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 01:47:12 +0100</pubDate>
<dc:creator>fwstaff</dc:creator>
<media:keywords>Thousands, electric, bikes, seized, councils, vent, anger, over, irresponsibly, blocked, paths</media:keywords>
</item>

<item>
<title>Eritrean migrant raped woman after avoiding deportation for previous sexual assault</title>
<link>https://freeworldsocial.org/eritrean-migrant-raped-woman-after-avoiding-deportation-for-previous-sexual-assault</link>
<guid>https://freeworldsocial.org/eritrean-migrant-raped-woman-after-avoiding-deportation-for-previous-sexual-assault</guid>
<description><![CDATA[ An Eritrean migrant who entered Britain illegally has been convicted of raping a woman after authorities failed to deport him from the country following an earlier sexual offence.Radiet Meles, 35, who is a former Eritrean soldier, was found guilty by a jury at Cardiff Crown Court after a five-day trial.Despite serving a five-year prison sentence for the attempted rape of an unconscious woman at a house party in Newport, South Wales, Meles was neither deported nor monitored upon his release.The registered sex offender was instead permitted to return to Newport, where he went on to attack another woman.
TRENDING

Stories
Videos
Your Say




Meles arrived in the UK clandestinely in 2015, concealed inside a lorry that passed through the Channel Tunnel. After just two days in custody, he was taken to Newport, where he later found work at a car wash and an Amazon distribution centre.His first conviction came in February 2019, when he was acquitted of rape but found guilty of attempted rape after sexually assaulting a heavily intoxicated woman who was unconscious at a house party.At sentencing, Judge Christopher Vosper QC said: &quot;After your release, it&#039;s likely you will be held in an immigration detention centre. As a consequence of this offence and sentence, the Home Secretary is likely to make a deportation order in your case.&quot;That deportation never materialised.The incident that led to his first conviction took place on August 13 2018, when the victim had been drinking in Newport city centre before attending a house party with others.Prosecutor Heath Edwards told the court: &quot;The complainant herself has little clear recollection of the events or the chronology at this time as she was heavily intoxicated.&quot;He added: &quot;The next memory she has of the events that night is of her being awoken in the back of an ambulance by a police officer and being told that the defendant had been having sex with her.&quot;LATEST DEVELOPMENTSPolice detain anti-migrant protesters in Portsmouth as unrest in city growsMark White baffled as police march protesters to face off with Portsmouth anti-migrant rallyLorry depot forced to bolster security after &#039;unprecedented&#039; increase in number of illegal migrantsMr Edwards continued: &quot;That was not something that she had consented to she was far too drunk for that.&quot;Judge Vosper told Meles during sentencing: &quot;You saw that the victim was heavily intoxicated and, to all intents and purposes, she was unconscious. &quot;You had formed an intention to take advantage of her if you could.&quot;Meles was taken into custody in March this year after police responded to reports of an assault on another woman.He denied both rape and assault by beating, but a jury at Cardiff Crown Court returned guilty verdicts on both counts following a trial lasting five days.During his earlier trial, the court heard that Meles speaks virtually no English and that imprisonment would be a &quot;burdensome experience&quot; given his distance from his home country. He required a Tigrinya interpreter throughout the proceedings.Now residing at West Park Road in Newport, Meles has been told to expect a &quot;lengthy custodial&quot; sentence when he returns to court for sentencing in November.Our Standards:        The GB News Editorial Charter ]]></description>
<enclosure url="https://assets.rbl.ms/67767526/origin.png" length="49398" type="image/jpeg"/>
<pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 01:47:12 +0100</pubDate>
<dc:creator>fwstaff</dc:creator>
<media:keywords>Eritrean, migrant, raped, woman, after, avoiding, deportation, for, previous, sexual, assault</media:keywords>
</item>

<item>
<title>British scientists fighting to save rare snail &amp;apos;as precious as Egyptian artefact&amp;apos;</title>
<link>https://freeworldsocial.org/british-scientists-fighting-to-save-rare-snail-as-precious-as-egyptian-artefact</link>
<guid>https://freeworldsocial.org/british-scientists-fighting-to-save-rare-snail-as-precious-as-egyptian-artefact</guid>
<description><![CDATA[ British scientists are fighting to save a rare snail which is considered &quot;as precious as an Egyptian artefact&quot;.Ian Hughes, based in Llanarth, Ceredigion, has devoted himself to protecting the glutinous snail, one of Europe&#039;s rarest species, after becoming &quot;beguiled by their cuteness.&quot;The fingertip-sized mollusc survives in just one British lake.The creature, known scientifically as Myxas glutinosa, gets its name from the sticky mantle that envelops its fragile, gold-flecked brown shell.
TRENDING

Stories
Videos
Your Say




Mr Hughes has likened its oversized antennae to &quot;big floppy ears.&quot; At one stage, his back garden greenhouse contained more of the species than had ever been recorded in their natural habitat.&quot;There was a point where we&#039;d got more snails in our garden than have ever been seen in the wild,&quot; he said.Water pollution and habitat destruction have been blamed for wiping the algae-feeding snails out entirely across England. The species, once common throughout British waterways, is regarded as a marker of clean, healthy freshwater environments. Their sole remaining UK stronghold is Llyn Tegid in Eryri National Park, Wales&#039;s largest natural lake. Mr Hughes has been venturing into the lake under licence from Natural Resources Wales since 2014 to gather and research the creatures, while also constructing small concrete refuges for them beneath the water. He established a captive colony in his greenhouse, unsure whether they would survive. Four months later, eggs appeared in the tank. &quot;Nobody had knowingly seen their eggs before we made that breakthrough,&quot; he told the BBCLATEST DEVELOPMENTSGunman who shot Spain&#039;s oldest orca faces staggering €2MILLION fineBizarre creature caught on film for first time ever lurking miles below surface of seaScientists lift lid on lives of three of Britain&#039;s most vulnerable shark speciesMr Hughes is now collaborating with the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) to distribute their captive-bred snails to wildlife parks across England.Samantha Eden, assistant curator at Wingham Wildlife Park in Kent, collected 24 of the molluscs from the Mr Hughes household. &quot;We&#039;ve got a new facility that we&#039;ve set up for them - three beautiful ponds where we&#039;re going to be breeding them, learning about them and understanding a little bit more about their environmental needs,&quot; she told the national broadcaster.Askham Bryan Wildlife Park in York, Longleat in Wiltshire, and both Dudley and Chester zoos have also joined the programme.Meanwhile, the Freshwater Habitats Trust is scouting for suitable water bodies where the snails might ultimately be returned to the wild.Nicky Needham, head of species management and conservation at BIAZA, said extensive research into the snails&#039; ecology, husbandry and genetics was under way.&quot;With fingers and toes crossed I&#039;d like to think that we could achieve that within three years&#039; time,&quot; she said of reintroduction efforts.The initiative forms part of a £60m government-backed programme to safeguard rare species, though climate change poses a growing risk.Simon Jones, assistant warden at Eryri National Park, warned the species faced &quot;an increased threat&quot; but said zoo involvement improved the odds of survival.Mr Hughes described the snails as &quot;an absolute treasure - like an Egyptian artefact&quot; and called their preservation &quot;a duty to our children and grandchildren.&quot;Our Standards:        The GB News Editorial Charter ]]></description>
<enclosure url="https://assets.rbl.ms/67767490/origin.webp" length="49398" type="image/jpeg"/>
<pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 01:47:12 +0100</pubDate>
<dc:creator>fwstaff</dc:creator>
<media:keywords>British, scientists, fighting, save, rare, snail, as, precious, Egyptian, artefact</media:keywords>
</item>

<item>
<title>EasyJet passengers flee commercial flight after power bank bursts into flames</title>
<link>https://freeworldsocial.org/easyjet-passengers-flee-commercial-flight-after-power-bank-bursts-into-flames</link>
<guid>https://freeworldsocial.org/easyjet-passengers-flee-commercial-flight-after-power-bank-bursts-into-flames</guid>
<description><![CDATA[ EasyJet passengers were forced to evacuate a commercial flight after a lithium power bank burst into flames.The Airbus A320 bound for Prague was evacuated at Milan Malpensa Airport after a fire broke out in an overhead locker, forcing terrified passengers to flee down inflatable emergency chutes.The aircraft had been taxiing for takeoff when crew members noticed smoke billowing from the overhead compartment.Upon spotting the fire, the captain immediately halted departure and ordered a full emergency evacuation.
TRENDING

Stories
Videos
Your Say




All 146 passengers escaped through the plane&#039;s emergency exits using the deployed slides as emergency services raced to the scene. Italy&#039;s air accident investigation body, ANSV, has attributed the blaze to an overheating lithium power bank.Two of those aboard the Prague-bound flight sustained minor injuries while exiting the aircraft. Fire engines and ambulances were dispatched to the scene without delay.As a precautionary measure, passengers on other planes that had been taxiing in the vicinity were also removed from their aircraft.ANSV, the Italian agency that investigates aviation incidents, concluded that a portable lithium battery pack overheated in the overhead storage bin and triggered the fire. The device is believed to have spontaneously combusted, producing the smoke that cabin crew first detected before the situation rapidly escalated into a full-scale emergency.The incident is not an isolated one for the carrier. LATEST DEVELOPMENTSEasyJet axes all flights from UK airport as passengers offered full refundsEasyJet launches recruitment drive for over-50s and admits customers prefer &#039;life experience&#039; from older crewEasyJet blocks disabled athletes from flight over lack of wheelchair spaceA previous easyJet service was forced to divert after a passenger had left a charging bank packed inside their checked luggage.The airline&#039;s own website makes clear that &quot;power banks are prohibited from use on easyJet aircraft and must not be used to charge other devices.&quot; It further advises that &quot;power banks must be carried in carry-on baggage only and it is recommended that power banks are carried when they can be monitored, i.e., on your person.&quot;The episode also underscores wider industry concerns.In May, the UK Civil Aviation Authority warned that improperly packed electronic devices, including vapes and power banks, were causing growing disruption to summer flight schedules.An easyJet spokesman told GB News: &quot;easyJet can confirm that flight EJU3905 from Milan Malpensa to Prague on 10 September was required to evacuate whilst taxiing to the runway due to reports of smoke in the cabin. Emergency services attended the aircraft. &quot;Our crew are trained to respond quickly and effectively and so they safely evacuated all passengers who were coached to the terminal building.  &quot;A replacement flight operated later that evening. Customers were provided with refreshment drinks at the airport and received support and regular updates throughout. &quot;The safety of our customers and crew is easyJet&#039;s highest priority and easyJet operates its fleet of aircraft in strict compliance with all manufacturers’ guidelines.”Our Standards:        The GB News Editorial Charter ]]></description>
<enclosure url="https://assets.rbl.ms/67767431/origin.png" length="49398" type="image/jpeg"/>
<pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 01:47:12 +0100</pubDate>
<dc:creator>fwstaff</dc:creator>
<media:keywords>EasyJet, passengers, flee, commercial, flight, after, power, bank, bursts, into, flames</media:keywords>
</item>

<item>
<title>Police confirm first arrest for &amp;apos;concealing identity&amp;apos; at Portsmouth migration protest</title>
<link>https://freeworldsocial.org/police-confirm-first-arrest-for-concealing-identity-at-portsmouth-migration-protest</link>
<guid>https://freeworldsocial.org/police-confirm-first-arrest-for-concealing-identity-at-portsmouth-migration-protest</guid>
<description><![CDATA[ Police have arrested a man on suspicion of concealing his identity at an anti-immigration protest in Portsmouth.The suspect is a 76-year-old man from Southampton.It comes after Hampshire Police announced it would use powers enabling them to arrest anybody wearing a face covering at the demonstration.A person wearing what appeared to be black scarves tied across his face and head was pictured in handcuffs on Saturday afternoon.
TRENDING

Stories
Videos
Your Say




Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary used powers under the Crime and Policing Act to restrict face coverings following anti-immigration protests featuring masked men in Portsmouth and Dover last weekend.In total, two men and a teenage boy were arrested at the protests today, according to the force.The 76-year-old, from Southampton, was arrested on suspicion of wearing or using an item to conceal identity at a protest.A 33-year-old man, from Portsmouth, was arrested on suspicion of obstructing a highway.A 16-year-old boy, also from Portsmouth, was arrested on suspicion of violent disorder in relation to scenes last Sunday.Police were in large numbers in Portsmouth city centre, where the demonstrators assembled to march amid a series of protests at small boat landing sites around the south coast.The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary warned protesters that they could be arrested for wearing face coverings under powers in the Crime and Policing Act.Anti-migrant protesters held Union flags while some wearing Portsmouth Patriot-branded clothing gathered outside All Saints Church on Commercial Road.A man with a megaphone got the crowd chanting &quot;stop the boats”.The Hampshire and Isle of Wight police and crime commissioner (PCC) said the hundreds of people who took part in Saturday’s protests were largely peaceful and complied with the restrictions on face coverings.PCC Donna Jones said: &quot;Thankfully we didn’t see repeated scenes of Sunday night with assaults on police officers and criminal damage to police vehicles and people’s property.“Hundreds of people took part in today’s protest, and with the exception of a few people, it was peaceful and conducted in accordance with the new law calling for their faces to be uncovered.She added: “The people of Portsmouth deserve to go about their business without fear and disruption. While some may think it was arbitrary to use the new power directing people to remove face coverings, the police ensured it was implemented equally and impartially for everyone involved.&quot;I will ensure this power is used proportionately in the future for both sides of the spectrum of protesters.&quot;She thanked the hundreds of officers who policed the event.GB News’s Mark White was on the scene amid demonstrations as police attempted to block streets for protesters on the move.“It is very tense here,” the GB News Home and Security editor said.Police also formed human barriers to prevent protesters from moving through the streets, forcing them into back alleys.Mark described the scenes as &quot;cat and mouse&quot; as he moved with the demonstrators.Earlier today, the GB News presenter had been left baffled after officers marched left-wing counter-protesters to within just a few feet of the original demonstration.&quot;It was all very peaceful and good-natured until a few minutes ago. Then the most inexplicable thing happened,&quot; he explained.&quot;The police have now marched a rival group, the Stop the Far Right and the Stand Up to Racism brigade, here,&quot; Mark added.Our Standards:        The GB News Editorial Charter ]]></description>
<enclosure url="https://assets.rbl.ms/67767285/origin.png" length="49398" type="image/jpeg"/>
<pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 01:47:12 +0100</pubDate>
<dc:creator>fwstaff</dc:creator>
<media:keywords>Police, confirm, first, arrest, for, concealing, identity, Portsmouth, migration, protest</media:keywords>
</item>

</channel>
</rss>