UK Riots 2011: Cameron to Step Down over “Savage Treatment” of Rioters, say Libya and Iran

Following four days of rioting in the UK, with groups of people causing havoc on the streets in cities such as London, Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester, the Libyan leader, has criticised David Cameron's call for more police power and accused him of launching a 'crackdown on protesters'.

While the NATO operation led by the UK and France started after Gadhafi was accused of using violence to crush opposition protests with allegations that his forces fired live ammunitions into crowds, the embattled leader has attempted to turn the tables on Mr Cameron.

Khaled Kaaim, Libya's deputy foreign minister accused the Government of attempting to crush an opposition uprising.

"Cameron and his government must leave after the popular uprising against them and the violent repression of peaceful demonstrations by police," said Mr Kaaim.

"Cameron and his government have lost all legitimacy. These demonstrations show that the British people reject this government, which is trying to impose itself through force."

In order to prevent a "brutal Crackdown", Mr Kaaim saw one solution- calling on the UN Security Council to act to prevent a "flagrant violation of the rights of the British people".

The Libyan government comments were echoed by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's president, who has also been accused of crushing the opposition and killing civilians who had been demonstrating peacefully in the streets of Teheran.

"This savage treatment of people is absolutely unacceptable, and British statesmen must hear the voice of the people and grant them freedoms," he said. "British politicians should look to help their own people instead of invading Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya to plunder their oil."

"If one per cent of this happens in countries that oppose the West, [the UN and human rights bodies] scream until they are hoarse," Mr Ahmadinejad said.

His comments came after the Iranian government-funded Press TV published a statement from a foreign ministry spokesman urging the British police to stop "the violent confrontation with the people".

Talking about the UK government Ahmadinejad said "They should change their attitude, change their management, and deal with their own people instead of intervening in others' affairs," he said.

It seems that the different reports emerging through the press have confused both Libya and Iran. A demonstration was organised in Tottenham, London, on Saturday August 6 by the family and friends of Mark Duggan, who was shot dead by police officers on Friday. This demonstration, which was also attended by members of the public, was peaceful. The latest events however were not demonstrations and the people who are now being arrested were not attempting to protest against government's policies but seemed to instead focus their anger on looting and stealing from shops. Moreover, the UK police and government have not killed rioters or launched assaults on the area affected by the riots with army tanks.

Others international reactions include the Dalai Lama, who said during a speech in Delhi, that he had believed that Britain was a law-abiding, peaceful nation and that recent events made him feel "really sad" while the South African government advised its citizens against visiting London.