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Arrests after riots rock city

Oct 23 2005

 

A number of people have been arrested by police after a night of rioting in Birmingham left one man dead and up to 20 others injured.

Violent clashes broke out in the Lozells area of the city after residents attended a public meeting addressing concerns about an unconfirmed sex attack on a 14-year-old girl.

Shops were hit and cars set on fire during the clash, and hundreds of police in riot gear were attacked with bricks and bottles.

Four people were stabbed during the violence, including a black man in his 20s, who was taken to City Hospital but died from his injuries.

A police officer was shot in the leg with a ball-bearing gun.

Assistant Chief Constable David Shaw, from West Midlands Police, described the violence as "entirely unacceptable".

He urged people not to "take the law into their own hands".

Mr Shaw pleaded with people to stop spreading unsubstantiated rumours and deal in facts to prevent a reoccurrence of such violence.

He said there was "not a shred of evidence" to support the allegations that the girl had been subjected to a serious sexual assault, but investigations were continuing.

Khalid Mahmood, MP for Perry Bar, said he was "saddened" by the "tragic" loss of life and added that no more than 30 youths were involved in the violence. The community was very "close knit", he told the BBC.

 

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