Hundreds of residents have surrounded a Border Agency van in Glasgow to try to prevent immigration officers from removing two neighbours. Crowds surrounded a Border Force van with the two Muslim men inside and one person lay underneath it, prompting Nicola Sturgeon to accuse the Home Office of creating "a dangerous and unacceptable situation". Three protesters were arrested, according to the No Evictions Network campaign group. The stand-off.
By Xander Richards and Abbi Garton
Police detain woman protesting against Home Office raid in Glasgow POLICE have detained a young woman who was protesting a Home Office dawn raid in Glasgow. The protesters have surrounded a Home Office van in the Scottish city’s Kenmure Street, with one person reportedly crawling underneath to prevent it moving. Around 200 people are at the scene and could be heard chanting “these are our neighbours, let them go” and “shame on you”. Around 30 police officers were drafted in and have surrounded the van to keep those detained inside. Now, at least one person has been detained. The young woman could be heard to scream as around eight police officers took her out of the crowd.
Scottish police free men held by UK immigration force by Reuters
Thursday, 13 May 2021 19:11 GMT
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LONDON, May 13 (Reuters) - Scottish police ordered the release on Thursday of men who had been detained by British immigration officials, after hundreds of protesters in Glasgow blocked the path of a van carrying the detainees.
Scotland s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who wants to wrest immigration powers from the United Kingdom government, welcomed the police force s actions and blamed the British government for what she called a dangerous situation .
Campaigners hailed a victory for Glaswegian solidarity and told the Home Office “you messed with the wrong city” as two men detained by UK Immigration Enforcement were released back into their community after a day of protest. Police Scotland intervened to free the men after a tense day-long standoff between immigration officials and hundreds of local residents, who surrounded their van in a residential street on the southside of Glasgow to stop.