Four things to understand about Belfast attack – from suspect to protests

A Sudanese national has been charged with attempted murder after a knife attack in Belfast left a man with serious eye injuries and prompted online attempts to provoke violent street protests. Police in Northern Ireland had called for calm amid concerns that demonstrations in Belfast and elsewhere could lead to disorder, following online postings by far-right agitators demanding that shops be closed by 5.30pm and streets sealed off. One widely distributed message called for participants to “prepare to fight or be arrested” – as a target list of 70 towns and cities across Britain was disseminated on social media. Far-right leader Tommy Robinson – real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon – shared the list. There are fears the incident will be used to further inflame public opinion by conflating crimes involving some members of ethnic minority communities with calls for tighter immigration controls. The attack took place in Kinnaird Avenue, north Belfast. Video footage appeared to show a man with a knife holding down another man in a residential street, repeatedly slashing at his victim before bystanders intervened. One man could be seen subduing the attacker by striking him about the head with a hurling stick moments before police arrived. The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said that the victim, a man in his 40s, remained in a serious condition in hospital with significant eye injuries as well as knife wounds to his face and back. PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson said there were no immediate indications that the attack was terror-related. Who was the alleged attacker?  After initially describing the suspect as Somali, police clarified on Tuesday that the man under arrest was a Sudanese national who had been granted leave to remain in the UK after arriving in Belfast from Dublin three years ago. The disclosure, confirmed by the Home Office, means that the 30-year-old man, was in the UK legally, although the full circumstances of his arrival in the country, and the basis of his asylum claim, have not been made public. PSNI said the suspect was believed to have travelled from Sudan to Paris and then from Paris to Dublin on unspecified dates. He then took a bus from the Irish capital to Belfast in February 2023 and immediately claimed asylum. The Home Office said the man was given leave to remain in the UK in September 2023 for five years, expiring in 2028. PSNI assistant chief constable Ryan Henderson speaks to the media in Belfast following the stabbing (Photo: Liam McBurney/PA) The Republic of Ireland has seen a sharp increase in the number of asylum seekers arriving in the country. About 45,000 arrived in the three years to 2024. Last year, Irish ministers said the majority had come from Northern Ireland, but acknowledged that migrants were also travelling from the Republic of Ireland into the UK Leave to remain is a status granted to foreign nationals who are already in the UK. It is divided into two categories – indefinite leave to remain, which allows permanent residency and is a stepping stone to full citizenship; and limited leave to remain, which imposes time limits, such as for a period of study. Asylum seekers are generally granted limited leave to remain for five years and can then seek the indefinite category once that period expires. Sudanese nationals made 3,376 asylum applications in 2023, as the country suffered the outbreak of a vicious civil war, which continues. The PSNI said the man had been living in the Kinnaird Avenue area. It is a predominantly nationalist part of the city, which also borders loyalist neighbourhoods. Graphic video footage, apparently shot by a resident, shows the tall attacker straddling his victim on the floor outside blocks of flats, and briefly shouting some words in what may be a Sudanese dialect before recommencing his assault. Horrified bystanders can be heard calling for help and shouting at the man to stop his assault, with one voice saying: “He’s trying to cut his head off.” Police said a kitchen knife had been recovered from the scene. Who intervened and what did they do?  The video shows three members of the public rushing to intervene in the assault, including a man who brandishes a hurley, which is used in the Gaelic sport of hurling, and resembles a hockey stick, but shorter with a wide, flattened end. The knife-wielding suspect is subdued after a number of blows to the head, with two police officers arriving moments later to make an arrest. The man holding the hurling stick was on Tuesday night named as Maitiu Mág Tighearnán, a father who had been visiting his partner on the street where the attack took place and happened upon the unfolding assault. He told The Daily Telegraph he had “just landed there by chance” and managed on the spur of the moment to “protect a lad”. Evidence markers at the scene of the stabbing. A Sudanese national in his 30s is being held on suspicion of attempted murder (Photo: Charles McQuillan/Getty) The video footage shows the hurley striking the suspect about the head five times, knocking him to the ground. Moments later, two other men, thought to be locals, reach down to restrain the attacker. An onlooker shouts, “There’s a cop. There’s a cop. Back off. Back off.” Two policemen rush to separate the attacker from his victim before filming stops. Police and politicians, including Sir Keir Starmer, praised the men for their intervention. Henderson said: “It is important to acknowledge the bravery of those members of the public who ran into danger to intervene and help the injured man.” What have police and politicians said?  Senior officers and political figures in Northern Ireland have called for calm in the wake of the “brutal” knife attack, amid concerns that the disorder that has previously scarred Belfast could return and spread elsewhere. Henderson said he shared “public revulsion” at the nature of the assault but appealed for demonstrations to remain peaceful. Belfast and other parts of Northern Ireland have witnessed a number of incidents in the last 12 months, which campaigners have warned amount to a vigilante campaign targeting migrants. The senior police officer added: “I understand that last night’s attempted murder will leave people feeling a range of emotions from fear to anger. Our officers have a role to facilitate and accommodate peaceful protest.” From left, Northern Ireland’s Justice Minister Naomi Long, Deputy First Minister Emma LIttle-Pengelly, PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher, First Minister Michelle O’Neill, and chair of the policing board Brenda Mullan speak to the media at Stormont (Photo: Liam McBurney/PA) The attack drew condemnation and horror from across the political spectrum in Northern Ireland and Westminster. Starmer described it as “sickening”, adding: “I have absolutely no tolerance for abhorrent scenes of violence like this on our streets. My thoughts are first and foremost with the victim, and I thank the first responders, including members of the public who intervened.” First Minister Michelle O’Neill was one of several politicians who called for people in Northern Ireland to resist external attempts to sow division within communities. She said: “Don’t let other people, who don’t care about here, incite hatred and fear.” Protesters, some wearing balaclavas, block the Newtownards Road in East Belfast (Photo: PA/PA Wire) Demonstrators bearing anti-immigration signs, and English and Union flags, march along Portswood Road in Southampton during an Enough is Enough protest (Photo: Andrew Matthews/PA Wire) Members of the far-right South London Patriots group gather in Parliament Square (Photo: REUTERS/Chris J. Ratcliffe) Fears that protests could spark disorder  Within a few hours of the Belfast attack hitting headlines, dozens of protests were announced across Northern Ireland and the UK, as AI-generated posters advertising demonstration locations were shared across social media platforms. Online posts named about 30 locations where it was claimed roads would be closed, along with demands that shops shut and explicit calls for violence. One read: “Forward all men of the age of 18 and over. Wear dark clothing and be prepared to fight or be arrested.” Another advert advised on how participants could take measures to prevent “evidence gathering” by the police. Yaxley-Lennon posted a separate list of 70 protest sites, as he appeared to be attempting to marshal demonstrations from Russia. A video of him with the father of billionaire Elon Musk, posted on Monday, has been verified by The i Paper as having been recorded in the bar of a luxury five-star hotel in Moscow. The PSNI is reported to have held emergency meetings to enact plans to deal with any unrest. It said there would be an “increased police presence” across Northern Ireland to deal with any disorder. Henderson warned of a repetition of previous unrest, saying: “No one needs to see a repeat of this. This only causes damage to the community, and unfortunately, young people often get caught up in that disorder, so I appeal for calm and the safety of all of our communities in response to this.”