LONDON: Detainees “armed with weaponry” have caused a disturbance at a London immigration centre, the PA news agency said on Saturday, as Britain struggles to cope with thousands of recently arrived migrants.

The UK government has been on the defensive this week after reports said some 4,000 people were being held at the Manston reception facility near Dover on the south coast meant to hold just 1,600.

Firebombs were also thrown last Sunday at another reception facility in Dover by a man who was later found dead. It was not immediately clear exactly when the reported disturbance took place at Harmondsworth detention centre near Heathrow Airport.

The Home Office said no one was injured in the incident during a power outage. “There has been a power outage at Harmondsworth immigration removal centre, and work is currently under way to resolve this issue,” it said in a statement.

“We are aware of a disturbance at the centre and the appropriate authorities have been notified and are on scene.” The PA news agency said in a report it was understood “that a group of detainees left their rooms and went out into the courtyard area armed with various weaponry”.

The Daily Mail said police officers were initially called to the centre at 7.45pm on Friday. Images showed specialist officers arriving with riot gear.

Separately, counter terrorism police said on Saturday that the firebombing of a UK migrant processing centre last week was “motivated by a terrorist ideology”.

“Counter Terrorism Policing South East (CTPSE)... have recovered evidence that indicates the attack at an immigration centre in Dover on Sunday, 30 October 2022, was motivated by a terrorist ideology,” the body said in a statement.

The evidence recovered — including from devices — suggested “there was an extreme right-wing motivation behind the attack,” it added.

Published in Dawn, November 6th, 2022