UK riots spread

The worst riots in Britain for decades spread to new cities as Londoners counted the costs of three nights of violence. AFP photo.

A policeman walks past the charred remains of the Reeves furniture store in Croydon, south of London yesterday, following a third night of street riots. AFP

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Violence spreads in Britain as PM vows to restore order

Guy Jackson | AFP

The worst riots in Britain for decades spread to new cities on a fourth night Tuesday as youths ran amok in Manchester and the industrial Midlands, after 16,000 police took to the streets of London.

Violence erupted in Manchester, as youths smashed shop windows and looted shops and chased photographers away from the scene, while hooded rioters set fire to buildings in West Bromwich and Wolverhampton.

Looters also targeted shops in the second city of Birmingham for another night.

But as darkness fell in London there seemed to be no repeat of the wave of violence which left parts of the capital in flames on Monday night.

Police were bracing for more trouble after what they said was the worst night of disorder in living memory in the British capital, and their numbers were ramped up from 6,000 to 16,000 on Tuesday night as Prime Minister David Cameron vowed to do "everything necessary to restore order to the streets".

Shops in many parts of London closed early and put down their shutters on the advice of the police.

There were reports of an uneasy standoff between riot police and youths in the deprived district of Canning Town in east London.

The focus of Tuesday's violence was Manchester, where police were driven back by gangs of hundreds of youths who covered their faces with scarves and ski masks.

Gangs smashed their way into shoe shops and electronics stores and set fire to a girls' clothing store in the city centre.

Two raiders smashed the glass entrance of the Arndale shopping centre, Manchester's main shopping mall, allowing hundreds of youths to pour into a shop and emerge with armfuls of clothes and shoes.

Glen Barkworth, general manager of the Arndale centre, told BBC TV he had seen two shops "both breached, looted and then torched. I've witnessed youths picking up gratings, throwing them through the doors of Footasylum (a shop) where 50 youths cascaded into the unit, looting.

"We're not talking about a group of 200 to 300 people doing damage. We're talking about half a dozen groups doing damage all over the centre."

There were similar scenes in Birmingham, and in the neighbouring town of Wolverhampton youths clashed with riot police brandishing shields.

Londoners spent Tuesday counting the cost of the orgy of violence that rolled across the city the night before, with cars burned, shops looted and running battles between police and rioters.

The prime minister cut short his holiday in Italy to return to Britain and condemned the looting and arson attacks as "sickening scenes".

More than 560 people have been arrested in London in three days, while 111 police officers were injured, Scotland Yard said.

Scotland Yard Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stephen Kavanagh said the rampage by hundreds of hooded youths was "unprecedented" and police resources were stretched "to an extent I have never seen before".

He said plastic bullets – used during sectarian unrest in Northern Ireland but never before in mainland Britain – have been considered to stem the tide of unrest.

The violence has raised questions about security ahead of the 2012 London Olympic Games, and it prompted the cancellation of Wednesday's friendly between England and the Netherlands at Wembley Stadium.

charred – blackened from fire  ไหม้เกรียม
remains – the parts of something that are left after the other parts have been destroyed, used, eaten, removed, etc   ซาก
riot – a violent protest by a group of people ความไม่สงบ การจลาจล
violence – physical force with the deliberate intention of causing damage to property or injury or death to people ความรุนแรง
spread – to gradually affect or cover a larger area แพร่กระจาย
vow – to make a formal and serious promise to do something สาบาน, ปฏิญาณ
restore – to cause a particular situation to exist again, especially a good one ฟื้นฟูสภาพ
order – a situation in which everything is well organised or arranged ความเป็นระเบียบเรียบร้อย
decade – a period of ten years  ทศวรรษ
youth – a boy or a young man เด็กหนุ่ม, วัยรุ่น
run amok – to suddenly become very angry or excited and start behaving violently, especially in a public place อาละวาด
erupt – to start suddenly ปะทุขึ้น
smash – to break something noisily into many pieces by dropping or hitting it with a lot of force ทำให้แตกเป็นเสี่ยงๆ, ทำให้แตกเป็นชิ้นๆ
loot – to steal things from buildings, houses or shops, especially during a war or after a disaster   ปล้นสะดม
scene – site; a place where something happens or happened สถานที่เกิดเหตุ
hooded – covered with a piece of cloth that can be pulled over a person’s head and face คลุมหัวปิดหน้า
target – to direct something at someone or something ตั้งเป้าหมาย
wave – an activity or situation which is happening again or is being repeated after a pause
flames – the brightly burning gases that you see coming from a fire เปลวไฟ, เปลวเพลิง
brace – to get ready for something unpleasant เตรียม
disorder – a situation in which people behave in a noisy or violent way in public, often as a protest against something ความวุ่นวาย
living memory – things that people can remember from their own experience, i.e., during their lifetime
ramp up – to make something increase in amount or strength เสริม
shutters – wooden or metal covers that can be closed over the outside of a window to keep out light or protect the windows from damage บานเกล็ดหน้าต่าง
advice – an opinion or a suggestion about what somebody should do in a particular situation  คำแนะนำ
uneasy – feeling slightly nervous, worried, or upset about something ซึ่งไม่สบายใจ, ซึ่งกระสับกระส่าย, ซึ่งเป็นกังวล
standoff – a disagreement or fight in which neither opponent can do anything to win or achieve their aim; a stalemate สถานการณ์ที่ต่างเอาชนะกันไม่ได้
deprived – without enough food, education, and all the things that are necessary for people to live a happy and comfortable life ปราศจากสิ่งจำเป็น (เช่น อาหาร เงิน และ อื่นๆ)
focus – the thing or person that people are most interested in  จุดสนใจ, จุดสำคัญ, จุดหลัก
scarf – a piece of cloth that is worn around the neck ผ้าพันคอ
mask – something that you wear to cover part or all of your face in order to hide who you are or for decoration หน้ากาก, เครื่องปิดหน้า
raider – a person who makes a quick attack ผู้เข้าจู่โจมทันที
pour into – (of people) to enter in large numbers ไหลเข้า
emerge – to come out of ออกจาก
breach – to break through something ทำให้แตก ฝ่าฝืน ละเมิด
torch – to deliberately set on fire วางเพลิง
witness – to see something happen – มองเห็น, เป็นพยาน
grating – a flat frame with metal bars across it, used to cover a window, a hole in the ground, etc ลูกกรงเหล็ก,ตะราง,รั้ว,ตะแกรง    
cascade – to flow in large amounts ตกลงมาเหมือนน้ำตก,ต่อเนื่องกัน
clash – a fight between groups of people การปะทะกันสองฝ่าย
brandish – to hold or wave something, especially a weapon, in an aggressive or excited way กวัดแกว่ง (อาวุธ)
shield – an object that police officers carry in order to protect themselves เกราะ
orgy – an extreme amount of a particular activity
condemn – to criticise something or someone strongly, usually for moral reasons การประนาม
arson – the illegal use of fire to destroy a house, building, or property; an arsonist is a person who commits arson การลอบวางเพลิง  
sickening – making you feel disgusted or shocked ขยะแขยง    
arrested – caught by the police and taken to a police station because you are believed to have committed a crime ถูกจับกุม
injured – hurt in an accident or attack ซึ่งได้รับบาดเจ็บ
Scotland Yard – the main offices in London, England, of most departments of the London police. สำนักงานตำรวจสันติบาลของอังกฤษ
deputy – a person whose rank is immediately below that of the leader of an organisation รอง
rampage – to behave in an uncontrolled, violent way อาละวาด
unprecedented – never having happened before ที่ไม่เคยเกิดขึ้นมาก่อน
resources – things that you need to achieve something ทรัพยากรที่มีอยู่
stretched – making use of a lot of your money, supplies, time, etc
extent – size; the degree to which something happens or is likely to happen ขนาด ขอบเขต
bullet – a small, metal object that is shot from a gun  กระสุนปืน
sectarian – caused by disagreements among people from different religious groups  ที่ำก่อโดยลัทธิ หรือชนกลุ่มต่างๆ
unrest – angry or violent behaviour by people who are protesting or fighting against something สถานการณ์ที่ไม่สงบ
mainland – a large mass of land that forms the main part of a country but does not include any islands belonging to the country  แผ่นดินใหญ่
stem the tide – to stop something from getting worse สกัด,ระงับ, หยุดยั้ง
prompted – caused ก่อให้เกิด
cancellation – a decision to stop something that has been arranged from taking place การยกเลิก