More than £100,000 raised for Belfast businesses targeted by rioters

A fundraiser to help businesses targeted by rioters in Belfast has generated over £100,000 so far.

It followed more violence in south Belfast on Monday, where a man in his 30s was left in a serious condition after attackers were seen stamping on his head.

Police officers also came under attack and an attempt was made to set a supermarket alight that had previously been targeted over the weekend.

Several other businesses were affected by the violence on Saturday, with owners saying they believed the Islamic community was being targeted.

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Several businesses were attacked during the violence on Saturday and business owners said the Islamic community was singled out.

The GoFundme was organised by Stephen Montgomery (25), who said he was “overwhelmed” by the response to help businesses affected by “the hateful protests” in recent days, with more than £107,000 raised by Tuesday.

Originally from Belfast but now based in Liverpool, he told the Irish News he felt compelled to act after seeing videos of the attacks online.

“Within five minutes we set up a GofundMe, it was really that quick. I was actually nervous that we wouldn’t reach our target of £1,000,” he said.

“But I went to bed and woke up to find it was £6,000 and by the end of the day it had reached £50,000.”

Having spoken to a number of the business owners in Belfast, he said they were still “grieving” over the damage to their livelihoods.

“It’s hard to have those conversations, but you can see a sense of relief as well as they can see there are people here that want to help.

“Not everyone is trying to run them out of our community.”

With riots also taking place in cities across England, he said there was “a dark cloud over Liverpool” which was a feeling his friends in Belfast shared.

“It’s just sad as the violence is still going on. That makes it harder for businesses to get quotes for repairs.

“But I do think there will be a silver lining to all of this, and Belfast can show we do want these people in our communities.”

Among the nearly 6,000 donations recorded on the page by Tuesday, one anonymous donor gave £3,000 to the effort.

A special meeting of Belfast City Council was also held on Monday, with a motion passed in support of the businesses.

Condemning the “violent destruction and racist intimidation across the city, caused by far-right agitators, councillors said they would uphold Belfast as a city of sanctuary for those fleeing war and persecution, and those seeking to exploit the murder of three young girls in Southport “to suit their own malevolent ends” did not speak for the city.

It was further agreed that council officers would report as soon as possible to establish a programme of financial assistance for business owners impacted by “racist criminal attacks.”