Children as young as nine rampaged through Manchester and Salford leaving a trail of devastation.
Flagship stores were targeted by yobs who smashed windows and looted clothes, shoes, jewellery and flat-screen televisions.
Riot police locked down all major routes into the city. Hundreds of extra officers were drafted in from Lancashire, Cheshire, Stafford, North Wales and Cumbria to help deal with the rioting.
A quiet summer afternoon exploded into violence after gangs of youths in hoods and tracksuits descended on city centres. Horrified shoppers were forced to flee as shops and businesses shut their doors and sent staff home early.
- How the proud cities of Manchester and Salford descended into violence and mayhem
- Fear closes 600 pubs, clubs and restaurants in Manchester city centre
- Politicians outraged and angry at violence - but say it's 'business as usual'
- Our reporters on the scene tell of anarchy and terror
- Paul Taylor: The shameless spree of the young recreational rioters
- M.E.N.comment: Rioters must be called to account
Video below shows looters coming out of Foot Asylum at the Arndale Centre ...
Market Street, King Street, St Ann's Square, Albert Square, Piccadilly and the Northern Quarter were all flashpoints in Manchester city centre.
Prestige stores including Marks and Spencer and Kendals had their windows smashed. Miss Selfridge was set on fire.
Many of Manchester’s 600 pubs and clubs city centre closed early
Forty-seven people were arrested but police promised further arrests would follow.
Video: Disturbances on Oldham Street in the city centre ...
Chief Constable Peter Fahy, condemned the violence as ‘organised plunder.’ Assistant Chief Constable, Gary Shewan, said: "These are criminals that have been running wild. There is nothing to justify this. They have has ripped the heart out of two great cities."
Glen Barkworth, manager of the Arndale Centre, said: "To see the public fleeing in terror is a sight I never want to see again."
Cesk Ulaj, manager of restaurant Rosso – owned by Rio Ferdinand – next to Pretty Green boutique, said: "Pretty Green was smashed and they've taken everything. The police were not present so they walked in, taking everything they could. A few cars stopped and they filled them up – they looked organised."
Video of the city centre at 6pm ...
Witness Rayhan Rezi, 27, from Westhoughton, Bolton, described how the trouble spread down Market Street. He said: "I was working in the Arndale Centre and as I walked out at 5.30pm a few minutes after it was locked up, there were kids, some of them knee-high and under 15, smashing the Arndale windows opposite Boots.
"It looked like they were organised, they were moving in blocks around Market Street. I was right in the middle. A small minority would go in one direction to divert police officers and the remaining ones were smashing windows.
"They went for the supermarket, then one of the banks. It was a small minority who were hooded up wearing hats and sunglasses and doing the damage, most were just watching and had come for the loot. It was scary, I felt threatened, there were women with kids screaming."
In Salford, shops at Salford Shopping City were looted, nearby Lidl supermarket set on fire, and cars torched. A housing office was also set on fire.
Two cars were torched in Salford where a mob congregated in Pendleton, near Salford Shopping City, and hurled bricks at police and their vans - video below ...
Jewellers on Shudehill
Ian Hanson, a spokesman for the Greater Manchester branch of the Police Federation, which represents rank and file officers, said: "There was an unprecedented demand on GMP resources. And how we responded just shows our officers' commitment and bravery. We step forward when there's nobody left.
"The looters who are attacking our city are feral. Those involved who think it is amusing should cast their minds back to the police operation following the UEFA Cup riots.
"We tracked down each one. They got a 6am call from the police and many were sent to prison."
Mr Fahy, who returned to Manchester last night from a break in North Wales said: "It is not like the 1981 riots".
"This is just organised plunder. There has been a degree of organisation through social networking sites. It is youths trying to steal training shoes, clothes, and anything else they can get.
"Their presence has mob hysteria and worryingly children have been drawn into it.
"Nothing in Manchester has happened to provoke this behaviour.
"It is down to people involved in thieving coming into the city in large groups," he said.
Our reporters were out in Manchester all night and sent updates to the live blog, which continues below. Click on the grey box below to read their updates, or click here if reading on a mobile device.
Comments
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20 YEARS OF BEING TOO SOFT WITH THUGS i.e. rights of not rights and not the victims. Now this is a chance to readdress the balance give them one warning then use rubber/plastic bullets.
They think respect is giving in to them.
Its also the time when the vast majority of the population should stop being afraid and stand up for this Great City and show them we will fight back.
And the police force is to be cut. We hear prisons are overcrowded. Well build some new one's without TV's & X-Box's. Prosecute them all now & when these prisons are ready. They can start doing their time then. In between sentence & doing the time. It will give them time to think about what they have done. How they have cost people their jobs & put our insurances up. This was rioting for the sake of it. No more, no less.
Did you see the video of the "rioter" with black crash helmet, HIDING behind his girlfriend when threatened by a policeman with a baton, who did not use it.
I have just heard an interview witha youth on radio 4.It terrified me if this a view held by a lot of these characters.
He stated,it would be his first offence if caught and would take a caution,the jails are full so what am I worried about?He stated "its free just go and get it you would be thich not to"Asbos dont worry me its worth it.
Will all do gooding Liberals shut up now and admit you and your bloody PC brigade have created an untouchable violent young generation who think they are untouchable.
As for Cameron...."hug a hoodie".....get in bloody touch with reality man
Build jails,increase Police,bring in the Army and pay for it by reducing foreign aid.We as a nation cannot afford it.
Will someone from this paper, explain why they published the story yesterday of GMP sending 100+ officers to help quell the London riots? This was a clear signal to the thugs and thieves that GMP yesterday, could have been understrength to deal with riots/looting/burning. An indication to these scum that it was a night to cause mayhem.
Irresponsible reporting in my opinion
Words fail me, but there's one thing for certain, we should be going in heavy handed, and knocking these feral thugs senseless.
They're already brain dead, so a round of plastic bullets would do the world of good.
Come on GMP, start to protect the people and businesses of the city centre, and greater manchester in general.
Unfortunately,it appears I cannot rely on the police to protect my family and property.A government unfit for purpose.
I can't wait for the excuses from the community leaders and the thieving low life. Allowing antisocial behaviour to go unchecked for decades is the root cause of this, nothing else.
take the benefits and houses off their parents. how dare they wreck our city, supposedly in our name. sod the human rights, as they lost all claim to that the second they trashed the city
too soft on scumbags we need hardline force and proper punishments not silly stupid asbos but proper punishments. regardless of age, parents also need to account for their kids afterall they did bring them into the world. the normal working people of this country have had a belly full of this scumbag breed, there are more laws for the law breakers than the victims.
Cameron this is your big opportunity now to make a statement to us normal people that you are now going to do something radical to stamp out violent theiving scumbags once and for all............ i wait with baited breathe
Come on Manchester - we're better than this, better than this by far.
Well done GMP. Watching on the live news last night it seemed that GMP officers were showing the rest of the country how to go about dealing with this unprecedented level of disorder. The TAU in Manchester city centre really looked the part. Good stuff.
Well done all at GMP for your amazing work yesterday. Pity people don't appreciate what you do.
I was ashamed of the scummy, trailer park trash who appeared to be running riot. Not protesters, just thieving, idle, anti-social, ill-educated yobs.
Time to bring back the birch; stop benefits; bill the parents of the idiots convicted for the damage caused.
Chin up Manchester, we came out of it OK. Hopefully, the rain will put them off for the rest of the week.
WE BUILD A CITY TO BE PROUD OF AFTER THE I.R.A. ATTACK, AND THESE SCUM JUST RUIN IT.
THE M,E,N LIKE OTHER PAPERS SHOULD PRINT PHOTO'S OF THESE MORONS. AND GET THEM SHOPPED TO THE POLICE.
NEVER BEEN MORE EMBARRASED TO SAY I'M FROM MANCHESTER
AS I AM TODAY,
LIKE MOST NORMAL PARENT'S, I DID.WHAT I'M SURE MOST DID. AND TOLD THEIR KIDS THAT THEY STAY IN LAST NIGHT, JUST SO YOU KNEW WHERE THEY WE'RE, AND WE'RE SAFE.
TROUBLE IS SOME FATHERS AND MOTHERS WE'RE OUT RIOTING ON THE STREETS LAST NIGHT, WHAT SORT OF SOCIETY ARE WE LIVING IN..?
scum bags the lot of them how dare you wreck my city i hope the police catch everyone of you and bang you up.
The criminals and disenfranchised have now trashed my home city centre, Manchester. We now have a sizeable minority within this country, who apparently can no longer relate to or engage with mainstream society. This level of alienation amongst our population, particularly amongst the young, has got to be addressed. I cannot tolerate my people trashing their own city and hurting each other. It has got to stop.
Saw Theresa May doing an admiral job of avoid the question of putting troops on the streets. If she cant make the big decisions resign and let people who are capable to do it. Where are all the posts from the Leftwing, PC-brigade - this is your mess for molly coddling the underclass for decades. It is time to round up these vermin and their supporters and make them a date with Mr Rope...... and rid this country of the scum that bleeds this country dry.
All those Police, all that mayhem, and only 47 arrests? No wonder people are questioning Police tactics.
Looters interviewed said they were doing it simply because "we can" the 'full force of the law' was treated as a joke (which it is), the looters simply didn't care. "the prisons are full what are they going to do, give me an ABSO I can live with that"
Our hopeless politicians have lost control of the economy and now they've lost control of the streets. Cameron & May have come out with the most outrageous comment about policing by consent, and so will do nothing to prevent a reoccurance.
If our politicians aren't able to bring themselves to do anything, then perhaps the time has come to support some kind of revolution?
Good luck to everyone at the clean up this morning, hopefully will be a good turn out despite the dismal weather. Show defiance to the brats that caused all this mess and show them that the true spirit of the city is far removed from the cowardly initimidation and assault of members of the public and petty theft and vandalism. Thick little idiots the lot of them.
If/When caught they should have their photos displayed in a rogues gallery so everyone can see exactly who they are and all the shopkeepers and businesses can recognise them. I still say that those caught and convicted should be made to pay for the damage. Cameron is a spineless prat he should have sent the army in on the London rioters with the water cannon and rubber bullets, that might have made others think twice about rioting in other places. And for those that don't agree with me then you probably havn't lost your home or your business.
What will it be like in 5, 10, 20 years time, there needs to be a complete clamp down now on these sub humans, because what other species, wrecks there own home. If they are teenagers, they should be sterilised now, so they don't breed more morons.
SAD clowns bring in the army shoot to kill. Make Manchester a better and safer place
i cant believe that the youtube footage above lasting 5 minutes and there are no police anywhere.... what is going on ??? these scum needed sorting as they congrgated not let them terrorise shoppers and workers whilst they fill their boots. YOU ARE TRASH and its not poverty thats driven you to this , its greed and lack of respect.
I totally agree with all the comments and these people should be named/photos displayed and let the communities deal with these pathetic morons. The cells are full, the jails are full so what will the punishment be? suspended sentences......
maybe sterilising the rioters thoughout the UK, should protect the country from the next generation of feral youth, and make them do hard labour for the rest of their sad pathetic lives. that'll make them think of their consequences, when they can't have a family, and leech off the taxpayers any more