Eight people are being sought by police after objects were hurled outside a hotel housing migrants during a protest in Aldershot.

Hampshire Police said a minority of the 200 who protested outside the Potters International Hotel became involved in the disruption on Wednesday evening.

The force has released images of eight people it would like to identify.

The protest follows multiple pockets of unrest across the country after three girls were killed in the Merseyside town of Southport on Monday.

Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and nine-year-old Alice Dasilva Aguiar were fatally stabbed at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class.

Axel Muganwa Rudakubana, 17, appeared in court earlier charged with three counts of murder and 10 counts of attempted murder, after eight other children and two adults were seriously injured.

In Aldershot, a demonstration descended into a “mob-type” protest, according to a police and crime commissioner (PCC). One police officer received a minor injury.

Appealing for witnesses, a Hampshire Police spokesman said: “Investigations are under way today to take action against those who sparked disruption in Aldershot last night.”

He said “the majority of attendees gathered in a peaceful manner” but a minority “got involved in criminal activity, throwing objects and subjecting people to racial abuse”.

Police have not directly linked the disruption in Aldershot to the Southport attack.

Alex Baker, Labour MP for Aldershot, said the situation had been “exacerbated” by people from outside the community.

“There is no justification for disorderly behaviour and these scenes do not represent Aldershot and Farnborough,” he posted on X.

“We all support our shared right to peacefully protest, but we will not stand for people coming to our towns determined to stir up trouble and divide our community.”

Separately, an 11-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of arson after a police car was set alight on a night of unrest on Teesside.

It follows the arrests of 11 other people, as police officers were attacked with missiles, glass bottles and eggs in Hartlepool’s Murray Street area on Wednesday.

Those detained included seven men, one juvenile and one woman, with ages between 14 and 54, on suspicion of offences including violent disorder and assaulting an emergency worker, Cleveland Police said.

More than 100 people were arrested in central London on Wednesday as officers clashed with protesters on Whitehall during a demonstration.

There was also unrest in Southport on Tuesday, which came hours after a peaceful vigil was attended by thousands to remember the girls who died.

Earlier, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said “action will be taken” following the “violent disorder” at a meeting with police chiefs at Downing Street.

Speaking in a televised speech afterwards, he laid out plans for forces across the country to increase their co-operation to tackle such incidents.