Hundreds of anti-racism demonstrators gathered at rallies in Edinburgh and Glasgow following days of violent disorder in parts of the UK.

Campaign group Stand Up To Racism Scotland (SUTRS) organised counter-protests outside Holyrood in Edinburgh and in George Square in Scotland's biggest city.

Demonstrators carried placards and banners displaying slogans such as “No to racism” and “Refugees welcome: Stop the far right”.

An anticipated counter-protest by anti-immigration campaigners and activists failed to significantly materialise, with only a handful of people turning up.

An anti-racism activist in Glasgow's George Square An anti-racism activist in Glasgow's George Square (Image: NQ)

One man, who was closely monitored by police officers, stood with a sign reading ‘asylum frauds out’ in Glasgow, while another shouted slogans with a megaphone.  

The sign-holder was met with chants of “Refugees are welcome here”, leading  to him leaving amid outbreaks of cheers and applause.

One campaigner posted on X along with a video capturing the large crowd in George Square: “This is Glasgow. Sending a loud and clear message to the far right. These are our streets.”

Hundreds of demonstrators also assembled outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh. Many protesters were joined by their children and dogs.

There were chants of "refugees are welcome here".

One woman told the BBC: "I'm here today to protest against the rise of right-wing thinking.

"We are not anti-immigration, we are not anti-migrant, we are anti-racist and I want to put all of those "pro" feelings on the street."

Another said: "I think everyone should be welcome here, it's not worth pointing a finger at your neighbour."

Hundreds turned up to the demonstrationHundreds turned up to the demonstration (Image: NQ)

The demonstrations follow similar counter-protests in Bathgate and Paisley on Friday, which were the first to be held in Scotland following riots across parts of England.

The civil unrest came after the killing of three young girls in Southport, after which disinformation was spread about the suspect on social media.

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Earlier this week, Police Scotland issued a plea for calm after rumours swept Glasgow of planned far-right disorder, which did not in the end occur. 

Trouble has flared in Belfast, where 120 officers from Police Scotland are to be deployed next week to bolster local forces.

There were few counter-protestors There were few counter-protestors (Image: NQ)

First Minister John Swinney said on Friday that “adequate preparations” were in place to deal with any flare-ups should they happen and Police Scotland had the resources to deal with any potential disorder.

Mr Swinney has written a letter to X, TikTok, and Meta – which owns Facebook and Instagram – saying police chiefs in Scotland have raised concern at the length of time it takes for technology companies to remove “problematic” posts.

In it, the First Minister told social media bosses: “It is clear to me that social media platforms have a duty to take action to ensure that individuals in our society are not subjected to hate and threatening behaviour, and that communities are protected from violent disorder.”