Refugee stabbed to death in Glasgow race attack

Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of Glasgow yesterday after a Kurdish asylum-seeker was stabbed and killed, apparently in a racially motivated attack.

Firsat Yildiz, 22, who had been living in the Sighthill area after arriving in the country less than a fortnight ago, was knifed in front of a 16-year-old friend.

The teenager, also an asylum-seeker, was unhurt but the protesters say he is now in hiding under police protection.

Two men approached the pair on a footbridge over the M8 and a fight broke out. Mr Yildiz managed to stagger to his flat after he was stabbed, but collapsed and died later in hospital.

Strathclyde Police have alerted Interpol, the international police agency, in a bid to trace the dead man's family. Several police forces across Europe are understood to be looking for them but it may take several days because the Kurdish refugee community is scattered.

Police appealed for calm after 400 asylum-seekers demonstrated in the streets near the scene of the murder. After some minor skirmishes, the protesters met with officers before moving to demonstrate outside Glasgow city chambers.

Chief Superintendent Kevin Smith said officers had been working hard among the refugee community with dedicated foot patrols and interpreters had been building better links. "All this good work should not be undone because of this," he said.

Officers say their efforts have reduced physical and verbal attacks on the refugees to a minimum because victims now had the confidence to report them to the police.

Glasgow City Council has also attempted to deal with racial tension on the Sighthill estate. A tenant was served with an eviction notice two months ago because of the anti-social behaviour of her sons and the council has pledged to do the same to others who target asylum-seekers.

Mohammed Asif, a spokesman for the asylum-seekers, said the council's efforts were not enough and claimed many protesters were afraid to return to their homes.

"There are people here who have stayed silent too long but now they have been forced to speak out. Some families are afraid to go back to their homes," he said. "We want assurances from the council that action will now be taken to stop racist attacks so no one else in our community has to die."

A vigil for the victim was due to be held today. Aamer Anwar, who joined yesterday's protest, said: "We want the council to speak to us now because one of our brothers has been taken from us and they are not doing anything about it.

"We want Glaswegians to come out in support of asylum seekers and hold a vigil in remembrance of this man. But more importantly we want massive improvements in the treatment of asylum seekers before these people can go back to live safely in the Sighthill community."

More than 104 incidents involving asylum seekers have been reported since the start of the year, 56 of them assaults. The number of asylum seekers in Glasgow has risen from around 1,350 at the turn of the year to more than 5,000 with about 45 per cent of those being housed in Sighthill and Springburn.