A Roma community in Leeds chanted ‘Please bring the kids back!’ as hundreds gathered in the city for the second night in a row after children were ‘taken away by police’ from a family home in Harehills, sparking mass civic unrest.
Scores of people took to the streets of Leeds on Friday night chanting ‘please bring the kids back’ in peaceful demonstrations, after locals set a bus on fire and a overturned a police car in an angered display late Thursday.
The removal of the children has sparked concerns about underlying prejudice against Roma communities. The ethnic minority group, who are widely subjected to discrimination and poverty across Europe, make up some 5,000 people in the area.
Last year, a report by Leeds City Council aimed at tackling problems faced by the community told of their ‘fierce pride’ and how ‘a problem for one member of the community was seen as a problem for all’ – as many now join in solidarity with the family’s pain.
The father has appealed for authorities to return his children since West Yorkshire Police removed them ‘to a safe place’ while attending an incident with social services on Luxor Street on Thursday afternoon.
‘Please bring my children back. I want them back. Why take my kids? They were taken from us,’ the Romanian father of the children told The Mirror as he began a ‘hunger strike’ pending their return.
Distressing footage which emerged Friday shows police officers hauling a young boy out of a house and bundling him into a van
Locals arguing and arguing with police in Harehills, Leeds, following Thursday’s disturbances
Riots in the Hare Hill area of Leeds began Thursday night after social services in the city removed all four children from a family
Another video shows locals singing along to music while people hold signs which say ‘please give back children’
In videos shared widely on social media, members of the public can be heard chanting ‘please bring the kids back’ – in reference to the children taken by social services
A video shot Friday shows locals singing along to music while people hold signs which say ‘please give back children.’
Further footage from last night shows a woman seemingly being led away by police because she was opposed to a second night of protests in Leeds.
The family, who are members of the Roma community, have committed to going on a hunger strike until their children are returned to them.
Stefania Banu, a local community leader, speaking to the the Daily Mirror said: ‘The mother and father are refusing to eat until they get their children back. We are fully supporting them.
‘We believe it was an injustice that can be rectified by the authorities if they revise the case. Which they have promised to do.’
Ms Banu went onto to say that the manner of which the children were removed from their home was ‘traumatising’ for the family.
A community leader told the Mail yesterday: ‘We are persecuted at home and now here.
‘The police should not have taken the children away, it is upsetting for the parents and family and children.’
Since Thursday’s riots locals in the West Yorkshire city have claimed that they have been ‘persecuted’ by police amid a shocking evening of disorder in the city which saw neighbours clash with officers.
Assistant Chief Constable Pat Twiggs of West Yorkshire Police said in a statement on Friday: ‘There has understandably been a great deal of speculation, commentary and concern following the disorder in Harehills, Leeds, overnight.
‘Our officers responded to a call from Children’s Social Care at around 5pm yesterday (Thursday 18 July) after social workers reported being met with hostility when dealing with a child protection matter.
‘Responding officers were attacked and helped Children’s Social Care staff withdraw to a place of safety.
‘As the disorder escalated, damage was caused to vehicles and several fires set.’
A joint statement on behalf of the Leeds City Council and the Romanian and Roma community shared Friday said: ‘The Romanian and Roma community have played a fantastic role in the community and have contributed much to the diversity and richness of the Harehills.
‘We want this work to continue, and develop further work that makes Harehills an even better place to work and live. The events of last night will not help our community or the family.
‘We need to work together with the authorities to ensure that best outcomes for the community, and to ensure our voices are heard at the highest level so we can avoid such scenarios in the future.’
Police removed five children from a red brick terraced house on Thursday afternoon because their parents were due to fly with them to Romania this Saturday.
Social Services had concern for the children’s welfare after an incident in April when another child, a nine-month-old baby, suffered a head injury.
The father’s boss, Neculai Tudorache, 44, claimed the social services were alerted to the property after nine-month-old baby was allegedly dropped on its head ‘accidentally’ by another child.
Leeds erupted into disorder late Thursday and saw a car being trashed while a double decker bus was set on fire.
Meanwhile, harrowing video footage showed a police officer hauling a young boy out of a house and bundling him into a van.
Witnesses said the removal of the child was the flashpoint which kicked off the rioting last night, with the disorder lasting for hours.
Photos from Friday show tensions rising in the city as locals appeared to argue with police while surrounded by a scene of chaos from the night before.
Families looked on at the immense clean up taking place to clear away the smouldering wreckage of a bus set alight in Harehills.
The intensity of the violence was deemed so severe that firefighters refused to enter the street for hours amid fears crews would be attacked.
West Yorkshire Police yesterday said that a number of people had been arrested following the violence and warned ‘further arrests will be made over the next few days’.
A TikTok live stream of Friday’s gatheirngs were shared widely on the site
A local argues with a police officer following the disturbances in Leeds on Thursday
Vehicles were set on fire and a police car was overturned as residents were warned to stay home following an outbreak of disorder in the Harehills area of Leeds
The smouldering wreckage of a bus set alight in Harehills, Leeds after riots brought chaos to the streets
The remains of a bus which was set on fire in the city amid the riots
Local people watch the clean up as police patrol Harehills neighbourhood after Thursday’s civil unrest
Local people look on at the scene following riots in the city of Leeds
Forensic scientists examine a burnt out bus, as police patrol the Harehills neighbourhood
Local people watch the clean up as police patrol Harehills neighbourhood
Forensic scientists examine a burnt out bus, as police patrol the Harehills neighbourhood after Thursday’s civil unrest
Police horses at the scene in Leeds after riots caused chaos in the city
Neighbours watch the clean up as police patrol Harehills neighbourhood
Protestors from the Roma community gathered in support of the family in peaceful demonstrations again Friday night.
Leeds City Council published an official report into the community and tackling concerns about prejudice last year, exposing the deep ‘challenges’ they have faced across Europe and in the UK.
The report’s authors say: ‘We were told about the fierce pride the Roma community had for their culture and heritage.
‘This had remained despite the challenges, and the stigma and discrimination, they have faced.
‘We were told about how community members would show great support for one another.’
Harehills has long been one of the most ethnically diverse areas of Leeds.
At the last Census in 2021, 38 per cent of residents of Harehills and neighbouring Gipton described themselves as being from Asian backgrounds, 36 per white and 17 per cent black.
It has also been ranked as the most deprived neighbourhood in the West Yorkshire city with among the highest levels of unemployment, crime and poor health.
At least twice before, violence and ill-feeling towards police has spilled out into street violence.
A JCB clears the remains of a burnt-out bus, which is cordoned off by police in Harehills, east Leeds, following the disturbance on Thursday evening
Aerial footage shows the aftermath of the trouble, with large sections of the area still cordoned off
A large number of police officers were seen on Thursday evening taking the children – understood to be from a family of Romanians – into protective custody
Police are still at the scene in Leeds where the violence erupted last night after a number of children were taken in to protective custody by social services (pictured: the street today)
Police cordons remain in place today after rioters torched a bus and flipped police car
Parts of Leeds resemble a warzone, with torched vehicles this morning pictured as smouldering wrecks
Pictured is the bus as a fire raged on board after riots set it ablaze in Leeds on Thursday
Police leave the scene of a burning bus after firefighters extinguished the vehicle
In 2001, hundreds of men went on the rampage in Harehills following the wrongful arrest of an Asian man, Hossein Miah.
Officers were lured to nearby Banstead Park over a false report that one had been hit by a petrol bomb.
A multi-ethnic mob then barricaded police with burning furniture from a second-hand store nearby as well as washing machines.
Over 20 cars were torched, 23 officers and a journalist were hurt and a shop was burnt down, with damage put at £500,000.
Twenty-five men were later given jail sentences for what a judge branded ‘violence for the sake of violence’.
Then on Bonfire Night in 2019, terrified Harehills residents cowered indoors as police were forced to battle a five-hour siege by yobs armed with fireworks, bricks and axes.
As with last night’s disorder, locals bravely tried to defend police, with six officers injured.
Three of the rioters were later given jail sentences totalling seven years.
However on the 20th anniversary of the 2001 riots, there were warnings that little had changed.
One business owner told Leeds Live: ‘It’s the same, it hasn’t changed a bit.’
A local resident complained about ‘blatant’ drug dealing, adding: ‘The police are present sometimes but I don’t think it’s enough.’
