Riots continued in Belfast for a second night in Northern Ireland, leaving 12 police officers injured and 16 people in custody.

British authorities have suspected foreign states of using proxies to instigate the unrest in the country, according to British media.

Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn condemned the “racist violence” after a second night of unrest in Belfast.

Hadi Alodid, 30, a refugee originally from Sudan, appeared at Belfast Magistrates’ Court Wednesday to face attempted murder and other charges related to the attack. He was remanded in custody and the case was adjourned to July 8.

Authorities feared the footage of the Belfast knife attack was seized upon by far-right accounts in Britain and abroad, helping to fuel violent overnight protests.

The 54-second clip, filmed by an unidentified bystander, was posted on X late Monday by far-right activist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, better known as Tommy Robinson.

Robinson’s post was swiftly shared online and generated a flurry of responses, including a barrage of xenophobic comments and racist memes.

It appeared on his account around an hour after police said a man in his 40s who intervened in the stabbing had been seriously injured. The victim was identified as Stephen Ogilvie.

X owner Elon Musk – who has more than 240 million followers on his platform – was among those to amplify far-right reaction to the incident.

Meanwhile, Metropolitan Police Commander Sir Mark Rowley said online discourse is “undoubtedly a contributing factor” to the Belfast unrest.

He added, “I was watching some news last night, I don’t recall the channel, but one of the journalists was talking about these protesters.”

He said, “People are setting cars on fire. This is not a protest; this is violent rioting and crime. It’s not just about people within the UK. It’s similar to the Southport riots, where there was evidence of robot farms abroad being involved… in stirring things up here, because this is very serious.”

Rowley indicated that Russia and Iran could be being behind the unrest in the UK. (EIR/Agencies)