Anti-migrant, anti-racism demonstrators clash outside asylum seeker hotel in UK

About 200 anti-immigration demonstrators clashed with Stand Up to Racism activists on Saturday in Surrey county in southeastern England, UK, PA Media reported.

Tensions ran high before the two groups clashed, with anti-racism protesters being heckled by residents of Horley as they marched through the town.

The two groups confronted each other on Bonehurst Road near the Four Points by Sheraton hotel, which accommodates asylum seekers, and were kept apart by police lines.

Police struggled to keep the groups apart while attempting to guide the Stand Up to Racism protesters through the anti-migrant crowd.

The anti-racism demonstrators chanted messages welcoming refugees, held signs promoting solidarity, and urged "racist scum" to leave the streets.

They faced a barrage of abuse from the anti-migration group, including one individual who shouted through a megaphone "you're all scum and you should be ashamed" and claimed that "this wasn't about racism."

Later, the anti-immigration protesters sang songs backing far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon.