Balaclava-clad anti-migrant protesters have scrawled ‘blood is on your hands’ outside a migrant facility in Dover as hundreds of demonstrators blockade roads around the port.
The protesters, dressed largely in black with their faces obscured, gathered around the ferry terminal on Saturday morning.
The group said on a livestream they are planning to stay for three days, with further disruption planned.
Far-right activist Tommy Robinson, who has been sharing footage of the demonstration, claimed protesters had simultaneously mobilised at different locations across Dover and shut down at least three sites.
He said he believed it would be ‘a long stand-in’ and suggested protesters would need refreshments as it continued.
Robinson also shared footage appearing to show masked men spray-painting the words ‘blood is on your hands’ on the ground outside the migrant facility.
In another post, Robinson wrote: ‘British patriots are gridlocking Dover with many more on their way. Get there to support them.’
One witness visiting the area said police appeared to be heavily outnumbered as hundreds of protesters descended on the town.
Kent Police said officers were dealing with an ongoing ‘public order incident’ and were ‘engaging with protesters’.
The protesters are thought to be members of Patriot Platform, a far-right group demonstrating against migrants crossing the Channel in small boats.
Balaclava-clad anti-migrant protesters have scrawled ‘blood is on your hands’ outside a migrant facility in Dover as hundreds of demonstrators blockade roads around the port
Balaclava-clad protesters have blocked roads leading to the Port of Dover in a suspected anti-migrant demonstration, sparking warnings of delays for holidaymakers
A large group dressed in black and with their faces obscured gathered around the ferry terminal on Saturday morning, blocking traffic in and out of the port
Kent Police said officers were dealing with an ongoing ‘public order incident’ and were ‘engaging with protesters’
P&O Ferries warned passengers of disruption and said those who missed their scheduled crossing would be put on the next available sailing.
Videos and pictures shared online show scores of protesters standing in roads around the port, many wearing black clothing and balaclavas.
A man filming a livestream of the protest declared that ‘something is happening’ as he observed the crowds gathering in Dover.
‘We have hundreds of men, English men, and they seem to be dressed head to toe in black, with black balaclavas, black everything from head to toe,’ he said.
‘There’s going to be waves upon waves. I’m led to believe Dover is going to have a problem today.’
A group of parents stranded in Dover fear they will miss their children setting off to swim the Channel after repeatedly trying and failing to get out of the town.
The youngsters, from Beech Hall School in Macclesfield, are due to set off from Folkestone before beginning their Channel swim from Samphire Hoe.
One mother said the masked protesters were ‘intimidating’, adding: ‘I think anybody dressed all in black with a face covering is intimidating because you think about the potential for violence.’
She said the parents would be ‘devastated’ to miss the send-off after their children spent a year training for the challenge, and were even considering walking to Samphire Hoe to reach them.
There is speculation online that as many as 300 people are involved, although this has not been confirmed.
Patriot Platform was launched in June by Danny Thomas, an associate of Tommy Robinson.
Thomas has described the organisation as a ‘resistance’ movement and claimed tens of thousands of people have signed up.
He has also promoted increasingly confrontational rhetoric, calling for supporters to take ‘direct action’ and put ‘boots on the ground’.
Patriot Platform declared on its website that it ‘needs people prepared to act’ to defend Britain.
Thomas previously shared his plan to ‘deploy multiple boats in the English Channel and at the Port of Dover, combined with determined boots on the ground’.
In May, he posted on X: ‘Together we will reclaim our borders, restore order, and send a clear message: Britain belongs to the British people and we are taking it back.’
His group claims to be motivated by ‘a love of country, responsibility to our families and belief in Britain’s future’.
Mike Tapp, the Labour MP for Dover and Deal, criticised what he described as ‘idiots coming to to cause disruption’.
In a post on Facebook, he said: ‘Park run cancelled and port access disrupted.
‘I am fed up with idiots coming to Dover to cause disruption. I bet if you asked any one of those ‘protesters’ they wouldn’t know small boat crossing are down by 40% and we are working hard to fix the mess.
‘Go home, enjoy your weekend/get a job.’
Commuter Nathan Ditchburn said the group arrived at around 6.45am.
He told KentOnline: ‘I would say there are around 300 men, maybe more.
‘They have blocked off every entrance and exit of the Dover port area, and Jubilee Way is blocked as well.
There is speculation online that as many as 300 people are involved, although this has not been confirmed
P&O Ferries warned passengers of disruption and said those who missed their scheduled crossing would be put on the next available sailing
The protesters are thought to be members of Patriot Platform, a far-right group launched in June by Danny Thomas (pictured), an associate of Tommy Robinson
‘It will be causing huge delays for the ferries today.’
Another man visiting the area said he looked out of the window of the hotel where he was staying at 7 am this morning and saw people walking ‘all covered in black’.
A clip shared by him shows large groups of people standing in the middle of roads.
He said: ‘Nothing can get in or out of Dover. The police are vastly outnumbered.
‘They have not made clear why they are doing this protest.
‘People in Dover are saying it’s about immigration, which seems a reasonable conclusion, but it’s not for me to say.’
He added that the protesters are ‘not making threats to anybody’ and that his understanding is that they are keeping silent.
‘People are going to get very frustrated because they are missing their ferries and it’s going to cause a backlog’, he said.
The Port of Dover confirmed in a statement on X that the disruption is affecting ‘all routes’ in and out, as well as around the town.
It said: ‘The Port of Dover can confirm that there is an ongoing public order incident happening around the town of Dover.
‘This is affecting all routes in and out the port and the town. We are in contact with Kent Police to understand the situation.
‘This situation is impacting our local community and our customers, so of course we are hoping for a swift resolution.’
In a statement on X, Kent Police said: ‘We are aware of a protest currently taking place at the Port of Dover. Officers are in attendance and engaging with protesters.’
Shipping company DFDS said: ‘We are aware of the current traffic disruption affecting access to the port.
‘Rest assured we will accommodate you onto the next departure once you arrive.’
Paul King, the Reform UK councillor for Dover West, said he has been told the demonstration is a ‘stop the boats protest’.
He wrote on Facebook: ‘Avoid the port area, large number of men have blocked the A20. I’ve been told it’s a stop the boats protest speaking to local women, they felt frightened by such a large group of men walking up the street.
‘We don’t condone causing public disturbance by protest. But it’s a very good example of what is happening daily with the boats coming in.’
Reform UK councillor John Baker, for Kent County Council, said he believes it is a ‘stop the boats’ protest.
