LONDON

Thousands of people took to the streets of Walthamstow in northeast London late Wednesday to rally against racism.  

Chanting pro-refugee slogans, they rejected anti-migration and Islamophobic rhetoric which has been on the rise due to ongoing violence by far-right rioters.

“Say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here,” was among the slogans shouted by protesters, who carried signs bearing anti-Nazi and anti-racism messages.

The protest was staged an hour before a planned far-right gathering in the same area.

But no far-right protesters were seen as of 9 p.m. local time (2000GMT). 

Ahead of the protest, which was held amid a heavy police presence, officers conducted a search in the area.

Some shops were also boarded up and others were closed early in Walthamstow due to fears of a violent far-right riot. 

The demonstration took place after far-right rioters announced a wave of gatherings on Wednesday in more than 30 locations across the country.

The UK has been rocked by turmoil for days, with violent far-right rioters spewing racist and Islamophobic vitriol targeting Muslims, minority groups and migrants.

The riots were fueled by false claims spread online that a suspect arrested for the July 29 fatal stabbing of three children in Southport was a Muslim asylum seeker.

Authorities have since identified the attacker as Axel Rudakubana, a 17-year-old born in Cardiff, Wales to Rwandan parents, but this has done little to deter the far-right mobs.