Effigy of the Grenfell Tower: Video of a group mocking its victims during a night at the bonfire



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LONDON – They burned a cardboard model of the Grenfell tower and mocked the victims. Now they have been arrested.

The two men showed up at the South London police station Monday night and were arrested on suspicion of public order, the metropolitan police said in a statement. statement Tuesday. Men aged 19 to 55 are still in custody.

The group, which was filmed burning a Grenfell Tower cardboard mockup, can be heard complaining "it's what happens when they do not pay their rent," while the effigy lights up.

The video, which would have been recorded and shared on an email application, quickly became viral on Twitter. Monday night, the video was fashionable in Britain, thousands of people expressing their shock and disbelief at the insensitivity of the group in the recording.

The tragedy of the Grenfell Tower, the deadliest fire in modern British history, claimed the lives of more than 70 people in June 2017. Witnesses said children had disappeared behind clouds Of smoke when the flames had invaded the tall building of West London. Residents were forced to flee, stay in stifling temperatures or jump.

TV presenter Alex Beresford was one of the many people who shared the video on Monday, calling the images "disgusting" and "perverse racism".

In sequences that many will find disturbing, we see a cardboard model with the words "Grenfell Tower" written at the top, manipulated by a group of people. Echoing the tragedy of real life, the effigy depicts people at the windows with outstretched arms and a person hanging outside the building.

"Goodbye, everyone!" Asks a member of the group as the drawing is carried to a bonfire. "Help me, help me!" Shouted another, seemingly making fun of the last words of some victims. "We're coming to pick you up!", Another participant shouted, referring to the pledges from rescuers who asked residents to stay put and wait for help – help that was not delivered in time.

Although the total number of people involved in the video is still unknown, you will hear a laugh when the effigy will eventually catch fire. In the background, you can see a flag of St. George. The banner, a red cross on a white field, is the traditional flag of England and has been increasingly adopted by the far right in Britain.

Monday night on Twitter, the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan m said: "I totally condemn this disgusting video. The terrible fires of the Grenfell Tower have been one of the most devastating tragedies that our city has ever known – and I urge social media companies to take the measures that impose and remove immediately this content. "

While the disgust of video is spreading rapidly on social media, British Prime Minister Theresa May m said"Disrespect to those who lost their lives in Grenfell Tower, as well as to their families and loved ones, is absolutely unacceptable."

In one declarationThe London Metropolitan Police Service described the video as "vile" and urged people with information to make themselves known. He also urged everyone present at the meeting to come forward.

Cmdr. Stuart Cundy, who heads the investigation on the Grenfell Tower, said in a statement: "I am frankly shocked by the insensitive nature of the video posted online. In total, 71 people died in the fire at the Grenfell Tower, so that a large number of people have lost so many loved ones and many others have been deeply touched. Mocking the disaster in such a raw way is vile.

"I can not imagine the distress that this video will undoubtedly cause to bereaved families and survivors.

"The Met's Grenfell Tower investigation team takes this matter very seriously. Any offense committed will be the subject of a thorough investigation. "

For many Britons, what happened at Grenfell Tower is an extremely delicate subject, with the tragedy at the center of the discussions about race relations in Britain, the adequacy of social housing and what could have been done for prevent hell. The memories of what has happened continue to haunt the survivors, the families of the victims, the local community and more widely the country. More than a year after the incident, many still require answers.

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