By Sachin Ravikumar
LONDON (Reuters) - A heavy security presence, rapid arrests and displays of unity by people across Britain prevented a repeat of widespread rioting involving racist attacks targeting Muslims and migrants, officials said on Thursday, adding that they remained on alert.
After police deployed in force and thousands of anti-racism protesters took to the streets on Wednesday evening, threats of widespread gatherings by far-right anti-immigration groups did not materialise.
But the government said it was still cautious after days of riots triggered by false online posts wrongly identifying the suspected killer of three young girls in a July 29 knife attack in Southport, northwest England, as an Islamist migrant.
More than 400 people have been arrested across the country and Britain's most senior police officer, London Commissioner Mark Rowley, said more had been arrested on Thursday morning, including many with criminal backgrounds.
For Prime Minister Keir Starmer, a former chief prosecutor, it is the first major test of his premiership since winning a July 4 election in which the previous Conservative government highlighted immigration as a major issue.
Officials dismissed suggestions the riots were political.
"Any suggestion they're patriots, or they've got a cause... is nonsense," Rowley said. "They're criminals, and frankly, most of them are going to be charged with violent disorder, and most of them are going to go to prison for a few years."
Several thousand people from anti-racism groups gathered at Walthamstow, north London, following threats to an immigration advice centre there. Others have protected mosques and hotels housing migrant asylum seekers that were among other targets.
Rowley hailed a "successful" night that had gone "very peacefully" apart from a few criminal incidents.
"I think the show of force from the police, and frankly, the show of unity from communities, together defeated the challenges that we've seen," he told reporters.
One man was jailed for three years on Wednesday for violent disorder and punching a police officer, and two others received jail sentences of two years and eight months on Thursday. The government has also secured hundreds of prison places to jail those engaged in violence.
Fast and tough judicial action was viewed as helping quell the last serious nationwide rioting in England in 2011, for which almost 4,000 people were arrested.
Starmer said Wednesday night was "much better than expected" but he was holding an emergency meeting with police later on Thursday to ensure efforts to contain any further riots continue.
"I was very keen that we're able to demonstrate that if you're involved in disorder, within days, you'll be in the criminal justice system," he told reporters. "That needs to continue."
NEO-NAZIS
While anti-racism protesters marched on Wednesday carrying banners with slogans like "Refugees Welcome" and "No to Hate", no large far-right gatherings were reported.
According to Logically, a company which works with governments and other organizations to reduce the harm of misinformation, the planned disorder had been coordinated by an international network of extreme right-wing Telegram channels with links to banned groups.
Former members of banned neo-Nazi groups Atomwaffen Division and National Action had joined U.S.-founded Active Club networks of white supremacist groups, neo-Nazis, and those of nationalist soccer hooligans to stoke tension and provoke clashes. They were among the first to share a list of targets, Logically said.
Many police and even some police dogs have been injured since the start of the rioting, with officers suffering broken limbs and facial fractures.
(Additional reporting by Michael Holden; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
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