POLICE have warned they will "leave no stone unturned" in their hunt for those involved in a night of rioting.
West Yorkshire Police said disorder broke out in Harehills, Leeds, on Thursday, as officers responded to reports of social workers experiencing hostility when dealing with a child protection issue.
The force said responding officers were attacked and helped social care staff withdraw to a place of safety, but as the disorder escalated, damage was caused to vehicles, and fires were set.
Specialist officers then "came under a barrage of bricks and missiles".
A police car was also overturned during the disorder.
The police have warned anyone engaged in future attempts of crime and disorder will be met with a "robust response".
In a statement, West Yorkshire Police Assistant Chief Constable Pat Twiggs said: “There has understandably been a great deal of speculation, commentary, and concern following the disorder in Harehills overnight.
“Our officers responded to a call from Children’s Social Care at around 5pm yesterday (Thursday, July 18) after social workers reported being met with hostility when dealing with a child protection matter.
“Responding officers were attacked and helped Children’s Social Care staff withdraw to a place of safety.
"As the disorder escalated, damage was caused to vehicles and several fires set.
"We continually assessed the situation and took the decision to deploy specialist public order officers who then came under a barrage of bricks and missiles from a large group.
"A decision was taken to withdraw these officers temporarily as it was evident that the police was their sole target.
"This allowed for further community mediation to take place in order to calm the situation.
"Police then returned to the area with fire colleagues to extinguish the remaining fires which were self-contained and didn’t pose a wider risk. By this point the crowd had diminished and officers were able to fully restore order.
"Throughout the night several arrests were made in relation to the disorder and further arrests will be made over the next few days.
"The force Major Enquiry Team have launched an investigation which will include reviewing CCTV and social media footage and images to identify the perpetrators.
"We will leave no stone unturned in our hunt for all those who were involved and will work closely with our criminal justice partners to bring them to justice."
Anyone who may have filmed any of the disorder is asked to upload footage.
A Major Incident Portal has been created where those with information, photos, and video footage, including dashcam or doorbell footage, can submit it through mipp.police.uk.
Anyone with any information can contact the force under Op Jerviswick or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Assistant Chief Constable Twiggs added: “It is important to recognise the disorder and damage was caused by a criminal minority intent on disrupting the community.
"Members of the community working in conjunction with our key individual networks and elected members who were on the ground were trying to de-escalate the situation. They are also working alongside us and Leeds City Council today to clean-up the area.
"There will be a significant policing presence within Harehills over the weekend and future attempts to engage in crime and disorder will be met with a robust response.
“I would like to thank the Harehills community once again for their efforts and support.”
Mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, thanked the emergency services and warned those "using this to inflame community tensions to think again".
In a statement released on Friday, she said: "I am absolutely appalled by the violent and thoughtless actions witnessed in Harehills last night.
"Such criminal behaviour will not be tolerated and I am in touch with West Yorkshire Police for regular updates on the progress of their investigation.
"I would urge everyone to refrain from speculation on social media and if members of the public believe they have footage of criminal behaviour, I would ask for this to be passed on to the police.
"I am relieved that nobody was seriously hurt in this incident - we will provide any support we can to the people of Harehills following the violence perpetrated in their community."
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