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                    "Dozens of people dressed in black and wearing balaclavas blocked the road at the port of Dover in Kent, forcing closures in both directions on Saturday morning.Kent police said they were were in attendance and engaging with the protest, which the Port of Dover described as a \u201cpublic order incident\u201d. No arrests were made during the incident. Responsibility for the demonstration appears to have been claimed by an anti-immigration group with links to the far right.The behaviour of the participants and the travel disruption they have caused has been condemned by the government. Traffic in and out of the port on the A20 was stopped, causing delays of up to 30 minutes and four miles of congestion, according to National Highways.Videos shared online showed a large number of masked people in black marching on the road in a large group as lorries waited in traffic next to police cars.By lunchtime, the protesters had dispersed and access roads to the port were \u201cfree flowing\u201d, according to the Port of Dover. Ferry operators pledged to put those who had been delayed by the disruption on to the next available sailings.Masked people on the road in Dover. Photograph: Ay_audits/YouTubeThe number of people involved was not immediately clear. One livestreamer estimated he was marching with hundreds of people but police did not give an official estimate.Social media videos showed demonstrators linking arms in a blockade across the A20 and chanting \u201cstop the boats\u201dand \u201cEngland till I die.\u201dA group called Patriot Platform, which styles itself as having \u201ca fierce love for our homeland\u201d, claimed responsibility for the blockade.The far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, reposted videos of the blockade, highlighting a live stream of the protest that directed viewers towards Patriot Platform.In his post, Robinson encouraged more to join, saying: \u201cGet there to support them.\u201dIn another post, he wrote: \u201cSimultaneously at different locations across Dover patriots have mobilised to close down the port. There are 3 plus locations that patriots have shut down so far with many more planned to be closed. People wanted action I\u2019m guessing there are 100,000s of men willing to fill their shoes.\u201dMap including DoverThe founder of Patriot Platform, Danny Thomas, also known as Danny Tommo, wrote on social media \u201clive Dover somethings [sic] happening\u201d and posted a live stream.In a video posted on 2 September, he told his followers he was meeting with \u201ca huge group [of] top, proper patriots\u201d to prepare for a message he was planning to send to the government. \n \u201cVery, very soon, we are going to send a message that will make sure they understand that we will not go down without a fight. We will not allow our nation to be plagued in the way that it is.\u201cAnd when you see it and when you feel it, I guarantee the whole thing will change for the better. Because once the message is sent once, imagine the sheer numbers that will be sent on the second, the third, the fourth message.\u201dIn further comments, he said: \u201cFrom the hills of Scotland to the fields of Wales to the streets of Northern Ireland and to the towns and cities of England, we are building something that\u2019s never been built before.\u201cAnd when you\u2019re part of it and you see what\u2019s about to go down, you will understand \u2026 we\u2019re about to show you what can be done when men and women of this country, who have the blood that runs through them like their grandfathers, get off their asses and do something about it.\u201dBalaclava-wearing protesters gather earlier on Saturday. Photograph: Ay_audits/YouTubeOn Saturday morning, the Port of Dover confirmed in a statement that the disruption was affecting \u201call routes\u201d in and out, as well as around the town.Nathan Ditchburn, who was on his way to work when he saw the group arrive at about 6.45am, told KentOnline: \u201cI would say there are around 300 men, maybe more. Nobody will speak; they just handed me a piece of paper to look at. They have blocked off every entrance and exit of the Dover port area.\u201dOne woman, who asked to remain anonymous, said: \u201cI was at Dover port this morning, trying to get on a ferry to France. In the end we left and returned home \u2013 it wasn\u2019t worth our while, we were only going to Lille for the day.\u201cBut the headlines calling it a \u2018protest\u2019 suggest something very different to what took place \u2013 which looked like a highly organised event.\u201cMasked teenagers in black clothes were coordinated by walkie-talkie and I directly witnessed an older man, not in black, on an electric bike \u2013 coordinating in plain sight and being applauded by the masked teenagers as he gave them the thumbs up for their \u2018good work\u2019.\u201cThe guy on the bike then went to the nearest police stop, [he was] obviously monitoring and reporting police activity.\u201cThere were no banners and no slogans, just pure intimidation. It was a demonstration only in the sense that they wanted to demonstrate their power and to intimidate.\u201dMike Tapp, the Labour MP for Dover and Deal, criticised what he described as \u201cidiots coming to Dover to cause disruption\u201d. In a post on Facebook, he said: \u201cParkrun cancelled and port access disrupted. I am fed up with idiots coming to Dover to cause disruption.\u201cI bet if you asked any one of those \u2018protesters\u2019 they wouldn\u2019t know small boat crossings are down by 40% and we are working hard to fix the mess. Go home, enjoy your weekend/get a job.\u201dChris Vinson, the leader of the Conservative group on Dover district council, said the protest appeared to be \u201cillegal migration-related\u201d, but said the demonstrators did not appear to have placards or banners.\u201cI\u2019m not aware that there\u2019s been any violence, although clearly, having the path of your vehicle blocked by men wearing black paramilitary gear and balaclavas is extremely intimidating, especially when it\u2019s not clear why they\u2019re there, and the police weren\u2019t aware and so haven\u2019t been able to warn people in advance and make sure that they are made to feel safe.\u201dA Home Office spokesperson said: \u201cThe right to peaceful protest is fundamental to our democracy, but we condemn the behaviour in Dover and the travel disruption it has caused.\u201cWe appreciate the frustration of those who have been impacted today. Access to the port is now restored and traffic is flowing. Those travelling to the port are advised to allow for extra travel time and to follow guidance from providers.\u201dThe shipping company DFDS and P&O Ferries said they would offer customers whose journeys were disrupted access to the next available departure."
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