THE LEADER OF the far-right group Britain First has been arrested in Belfast this afternoon over a speech he gave earlier this year.
The BBC reports that Paul Golding, aged 35, was arrested outside the courtroom today while accompanying the deputy leader of the same group Jayda Fransen to a hearing.
Fransen, who faced two charges relating to behaviour intended to or likely to stir up hatred, made the headlines in November after US President Donald Trump retweeted her messages.
The tweets purported to show violence and religious-focused vandalism by what Fransen claims are members of the Islamic community, but the authenticity of the videos has been repeatedly questioned.
White House spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders admitted to the press that the videos might not be real when defending the president’s actions to the press. When asked if the video was real, she answered:
“Whether it’s a real video, the threat is real. His goal is to promote strong border security and strong national security.”
The PSNI released a statement this afternoon confirming that a 35-year-old man had been arrested today by detectives investigating speeches made at the Northern Ireland Against Terrorism Rally in August.
He has since been taken to Musgrave PSNI Station to be interviewed, it said.
Britain First
Founded in 2011, Britain First opposes multiculturalism and what it calls the “Islamisation” of Britain.
Small but publicity-savvy, it has staged direct-action protests at mosques and is active on social media. The group regularly posts inflammatory videos purporting to show violence by Muslims without context or supporting information.
Fransen, aged 31, was convicted last year of religiously aggravated harassment after hurling abuse at a Muslim woman wearing a hijab during what was billed as a “Christian patrol” in the town of Luton, north of London.
She currently faces four unrelated counts of harassment relating to leaflets and videos as well as the separate charge of hate speech.
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