Although partly written by academics and often couched in Guardianese, the facts about the riots are plainly stated and make shocking reading. The report ducks the question of whether the rioters should be called racist, but makes it clear that they were motivated by hostility to non-Muslims as such, and that their action were premeditated. Non-Muslim businesses and establishments serving alcohol were singled out for attack. The report should also be some guide to the merits of allegations that the sentences imposed on the rioters were too harsh.
The report notes evidence of "premeditation" in the violence, the unprecedented "ferocity," and that the violence "was specifically targeted, mostly against non-Muslim premises on the one hand, and against the police on the other."
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