London is home to thousands of Arabs and welcomes many more visitors from the MENA region during the summer months [Getty]
A far-right rampage in the UK has seen Middle East, Asian, and African nations issue travel warnings for citizens visiting the country, amid fears of further extremist violence in the coming days.
The UAE warned travellers could be at risk of the “unstable security situation in various cities across the UK” with extremist riots breaking out in major cities and towns over the weekend, much of the rhetoric and violence aimed at mosques, Muslim immigrants, and people of colour.
The Emirati embassy in London called on citizens to “exercise the necessary precautions and avoid crowded areas in some cities”.
London is a major holiday destination for Emiratis and other people from the Gulf, particularly during the summer, with 477,000 visits from the UAE to the UK last year, with an average of £1,918 spent per visit.
India also warned its citizens to “stay vigilant and exercise due caution” when visiting the UK with violence breaking out in Liverpool, Manchester, Rotherham and other towns and cities in the country.
Both countries advised nationals to avoid flashpoint areas, where Islamophobic rhetoric and racist attacks have been reported.
Despite the travel warnings, the UK’s national tourism agency ‘VisitBritain’ said that the country still remains open to welcome tourists.
“Demand for travel to Britain remains strong and we continue to welcome many millions of visitors from all over the world,” a VisitBritain spokesperson told The New Arab.
“We are working closely with our overseas teams to monitor travel sentiment and to ensure international travel trade have the latest factual information available, as necessary.”
The violence began in Southport, North West England last week after the murder of three girls with the UK-born suspect arrested in the case falsely accused of being Muslim and an asylum seeker.
Police have warned against the spread of false information, such as the religion of the suspect, and said prosecutions against those stirring up the hatred will follow.
Malaysia was one of the first countries to issue a travel advisory for the UK, when it warned its citizens – many of them students – to “stay away from the protest areas”.
Neighbouring Indonesia later told nationals to exercise “extreme vigilance” if travelling or leaving their homes in the UK.
Nigeria’s foreign ministry warned that the far-right riots had “spawned an anti-immigrant narrative, with particular emphasis on Muslim immigrants and persons of colour”.
There have been reports of people of colour being targeted by the mobs, while hotels hosting asylum seekers have been attacked.
Nearly 400 people have been arrested in connection with the riots and the UK government has promised swift justice against all law breakers.
Pro-immigration counter-protests have also been held in the flashpoint towns and cities with specialised police units set up to tackle the violence.