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Police were today investigating at least two racist attacks on Asian students outside a London university.
A mob armed with metal poles, bricks and sticks ambushed students near City University in Islington on Friday evening.
Four victims were stabbed and were treated in hospital before being released the same day.
Police said two other men were also beaten in the violence. Witnesses said up to 30 youths were involved in the clash in St John Street. Three men, aged 17, 18 and 19, were arrested.
Earlier in the day a gang of white and black youths was said to have shouted racist abuse at a group of Asian students.
Police are also investigating an attack earlier in the week when a gang surrounded and attacked an Asian student, leaving their victim beaten and bruised.
Today an Islamic student group said the mob ambush was the culmination of a series of attacks. The Federation of Student Islamic Societies said Islamophobic and racist abuse had been shouted at students.
Racist offences in Islington have rocketed by 54 per cent in the last year, figures have revealed.
The number of offences in a rolling 12-month period has risen from 292 last year to 450 this year, according to the Metropolitan Police.
The increase is the biggest of any borough in London, and far exceeds the total rise of six per cent across the capital.
A Met spokesman said extra patrols were taking place around the university as a result of the violence, and that officers were using special stop and search powers on potential suspects.
Detective Inspector Trevor Borley, of the Islington police community safety unit, said: "We are taking this matter very seriously.
"We have put out reassurance patrols in St John Street and surrounding area. In addition, we will also be carrying out Section 60 searches."
City University is also understood to have increased security measures around its buildings.
The Met has described the suspects in the first attack, on Monday, as black. All of the attackers are believed to be teenagers.
Police are appealing for witnesses or for anyone who has information on the attacks to call officers on 0207 421 0107.
Reader views (3)
These attacks have been against muslim students, and I agree with the comment above, the media has associated race with religion even though they are two completely diffferent things and it has not only been asians being targeted.
It has disrupted our daily lives and education, as most of us muslim students are missing lectures and classes to get home before it gets dark and to not go home alone as a precaution.
The police and university should have done more earlier seeing as the attacks hav been happening since monday, it shouldn't have taken people being stabbed for everyone to take the abuse more seriously.
- City Student, london
The attacks are absolutely deplorable and must be denounced by every civic-minded individual in our great city, regardless of colour. There is no place for racism in London or anywhere else. Full stop.
I am concerned, however, by the way race is constantly confounded with religion in the media. The article presumes that the Asian students were Muslim. This is not necessarily true. Not all Asians (or Arabs for that matter) are Muslim, nor are all Muslims Asian. To suggest so is a fallacy of logic.
- Peter, London
This will be one of many of Labour's unfortunate legacies.
Diversity causes division, we should be working together towards a commonality, not highlighting what makes us different.
- Frank, Home Counties, England.
