‘Hero’ councillor who formed ‘human shield’ to stop escalating violence in Leeds riots

A councillor has been hailed as a hero after he tried to calm violent scenes which erupted in Leeds on Thursday night.

Mothin Ali, a Green councillor for Gipton and Harehills ward, said he returned home at 3am on Friday after trying to stop people throwing objects and adding to the fires already underway.

He was filmed theatrically kicking away a wheelie bin being dragged towards a fire by two youths – one wearing a balaclava – and with the other, stopping another adult from throwing a wooden pallet onto the fire.

Calling for calm the day after the violence, he said The Independent:”The police were not there. I don’t want to criticize them, but they left the scene and tried to come back to regain control, but they were pelted with bricks and bottles and chased away.

“Our neighbourhood policing team is fantastic and genuinely cares about our community, but they didn’t have the resources or support they needed.

“They had no shields or helmets. With a few others, we tried to form a human shield. We positioned ourselves in front of the bricks and bottles and tried to give the police a way to retreat.”

West Yorkshire Police have tackled a “serious incident of disorder” in the Harehills area, while residents have been urged to stay indoors as large crowds gathered in the streets.

Police have vowed that those responsible will face the “full force of the law”. Leeds City Council Chief Executive Tom Riordan said a “domestic incident” had sparked the disturbances and that the actions of police and social workers had been “misinterpreted”.

Recalling what was going through his mind as he intervened in the riots, Mr Ali said in a raspy voice: “This is my community, these are my people, regardless of their behaviour. This behaviour is unacceptable, but we need people to step up and calm things down when they can. I have a position of authority and I have to use it.”

“I took the trash can from the hands of these young boys and, thanks to them, they showed me respect and walked away. They didn’t try anything else.

“Later, the crowd changed and became more aggressive. People were pushing and shoving me. I don’t even know if I was scared, I wasn’t thinking about it. I was just thinking about my community.”

He said he received a minor blow to the head, but “nothing that would kill me.”

Although some seized on Mr Ali’s images and used the opportunity to blame him for the riots, many praised him for his behaviour.

Nate Higgins, another Green councillor based in Newham, London, wrote on X: “Mothin Ali is behaving like a real superhero… I doubt many people here will recognise his heroic behaviour tonight.”

Conservative campaign group Turning Point UK added that it was “trying to prevent unrest and stop rubbish being thrown into fires”.

“Last night Ali was a hero,” he wrote.

Mr Ali spoke passionately about Harehills, admitting he was heartbroken by the images of violence shared in the media and online.

He said: “We’re not the richest community in the world but the people here matter. Harehills has its share of problems, there’s a lot of poverty and a lot of different communities trying to settle in the UK.”

“It has always been a stepping stone for immigrant communities to come, build their foundations and move on to better things.

“We have people who have language problems, who don’t understand how the system works. Many people come from disadvantaged backgrounds and all this can make them distrustful of the authorities.

“Harehills are people who put out fires. People who come together when everyone is against us and do whatever they can to survive.

“No one wants to see destruction on their doorstep, it was heartbreaking. It’s going to have a lasting impact on our community.”

Nigel Farage has been accused of stoking tensions in the region after blaming the riots on “subcontinent politics”.

Alex Sobel, Labour MP for Leeds Central and Headingley, responded to the Reform leader’s post on X: “This is a situation you know nothing about and no one has informed you about.

“You are making the situation worse with false information. Politicians have a responsibility not to make the situation worse, especially when they are unaware of it. I expect you to apologize.”

Police confirmed that no injuries had been reported so far, but urged people to refrain from speculating about the incident.