Hiiraan Online

Asylum seeker Khadar Mohamed from The Bell Hotel in Epping. Credit/ The Mirror

LONDON, England (HOL) — A Somali asylum seeker at the Bell Hotel in Epping says he and other migrants are too afraid to step outside after a court ruling allowed them to remain housed in the building, as protests and police clashes intensify outside.

Khadar Mohamed, 24, who fled Somalia in 2022, told The Mirror that residents are choosing to stay inside out of fear of harassment from demonstrators. “The judge has made a good and right decision. I believe that if we were taken from this hotel, these people who are against us would find us and chase us. If we left this hotel, where would we go? If we went into government housing, then these people will say that we are taking their houses,” he said.”

The Court of Appeal on Friday overturned a High Court injunction that would have forced 138 asylum seekers to leave the hotel by September 12, siding with the Home Office and the building’s owner, Somani Hotels. The decision was seen as a victory for the government, which warned that removing residents could destabilize Britain’s asylum system at a time when applications have reached record levels.

The ruling has fueled anger in Epping, where the Bell Hotel has become a focal point of anti-immigration protests. Police arrested three demonstrators Friday night. One on suspicion of violent disorder, another for assaulting an officer, and a third for drunk driving. Two officers suffered minor injuries. Essex Police said it will continue to facilitate peaceful protest but warned it would act against violence or masked demonstrators. A Section 60AA order remains in place, giving police powers to require demonstrators to remove face coverings.

The protests escalated after an asylum seeker housed at the hotel was charged last month with sexually assaulting a teenage girl, an allegation he denies. Demonstrators argue migrants should not be housed in hotels, while the Home Office insists the accommodations are needed amid soaring demand.

Mohamed, who said he was granted asylum after fleeing the militant group al-Shabaab, stressed that residents should not be judged by one case.

“None of us support any form of sex attacks or paedophiles or anything like that. All of us have come here for a better life and I have won the right to stay here, yet I'm still feeling persecuted,” Mohamed added. “I would ask that these people who have been protesting remember that we are human and that we are kind and friendly. One sex attack does not mean that we are all bad.”

He described fleeing his hometown of Elbur after al-Shabaab fighters tried to recruit him. His sister Farhiya was killed after being forced into marriage with a militant and refusing to comply with the group’s ideology, he said.

The Bell Hotel case highlights the mounting pressure on Britain’s asylum system. Home Office data released this month showed 111,000 asylum applications in the past year, the highest on record and a 14 percent increase from 2024. Officials warned that more legal challenges from local councils could complicate efforts to house migrants.

For Mohamed, the protests have left him unwilling to leave the hotel even briefly. “I went outside at 1 o'clock today, but there was nobody outside. But I don't think I'll be going out tonight and maybe stay inside for at least a week with many of the others. We are living in fear.”

“They were here last night and I believe they will come back more angry now,” he said of the protesters. “I don't like being called a scumbag. I have the right to stay here. These people need to respect the court's decisions.”