In a church hall in Hull, groups of asylum seekers queue for tea and toast and advice from immigration experts.
The room is busy, the busiest it’s been since the riots.
The volunteers who run the weekly event say many people were initially too scared to come out following the violence.
As in other towns and cities, a hotel housing migrants became a target for the rioters.
Wahag, 24, describes watching the attack from a window on the third floor of the hotel.
Image: Riot police stood guard outside the hotel
Image: Wahag watched from a window as people gathered outside
Speaking in Arabic via a translator, he recalls: “I felt scared. I saw the people throwing stones and rocks at the hotel.”
He says he and the other migrants were advised not to go out.
Concerned there could be further riots, he says: “I’m worried that if it does happen again, it would be very bad.”
Wahag says he arrived in the UK by small boat just a few months ago after making the journey across Europe from Yemen.
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The riots have left him with mixed views on Britain, where he thought he would be safe.
“There are some bad people and some good people,” he reflects, but he says the UK has a “good government”.
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Bodycam: Police attacked in Hull riots
Image: Shops were attacked and looted in Hull city centre
Wahag reveals that the Home Office has now granted him leave to remain in Britain.
The decision came much more quickly than he expected. His is one of many asylum claims processed since Labour won the election, as it begins to tackle a backlog of applications.
He says he is “happy” Labour is now in power.
“The previous government, they wanted to deport us but now they are making the procedure easier for us,” he says.
It means he will have to move out of the hotel, but is now free to make a life in Britain.
Many of the migrants we spoke to remain more wary about going out.
William, from Kenya, believes asylum seekers were targeted because people think “we came here to seek money or their jobs”.
But he says it’s unfair migrants are blamed for the accommodation and support they are given.
Image: William hid in a community centre as cars and tyres were set alight nearby
“It’s the Home Office and the government,” says William.
“If we were given the right to work we cannot be living in hotels, living for free.”
‘It’s not our fault they put me in that hotel’
Mustafa, who came to the UK on the back of a lorry nine years ago, was also in the hotel as rioters attacked it.
“We hear they are shouting ‘we need to burn the hotel, we need to burn the people in the hotel’,” he recalls, praising the police for keeping him and others safe.
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Earlier this year Mustafa, from Iraq, was destitute.
His asylum claim had been rejected and he was sleeping on a park bench.
But he has since put in a fresh claim, which meant the Home Office gave him a room in the hotel while he awaits a decision.
Asked if he understands why some people find it frustrating he gets a hotel room, an option not available to people born in Britain who find themselves destitute, he says “of course, of course”.
But he says: “You know the procedure of the Home Office. It’s not our fault they put me in that hotel.”
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A Home Office spokesperson said it is “determined to restore order to the asylum system after it has been put under unprecedented pressure, so that it operates swiftly, firmly and fairly”.
They added: “We have taken necessary action to restart asylum processing and clear the backlog of cases which will save an estimated £7bn for the taxpayer over the next 10 years.”
The shutdown of the US government entered its 38th day on Friday, with the Senate set to vote on a funding bill that could temporarily restore operations.
According to the US Senate’s calendar of business on Friday, the chamber will consider a House of Representatives continuing resolution to fund the government. It’s unclear whether the bill will cross the 60-vote threshold needed to pass in the Senate after numerous failed attempts in the previous weeks.
Amid the shutdown, Republican and Democratic lawmakers have reportedly continued discussions on the digital asset market structure bill. The legislation, passed as the CLARITY Act in the House in July and referred to as the Responsible Financial Innovation Act in the Senate, is expected to provide a comprehensive regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies in the US.
Although members of Congress have continued to receive paychecks during the shutdown — unlike many agencies, where staff have been furloughed and others are working without pay — any legislation, including that related to crypto, seems to have taken a backseat to addressing the shutdown.
At the time of publication, it was unclear how much support Republicans may have gained from Democrats, who have held the line in demanding the extension of healthcare subsidies and reversing cuts from a July funding bill.
Is the Republicans’ timeline for the crypto bill still attainable?
Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis, one of the market structure bill’s most prominent advocates in Congress, said in August that Republicans planned to have the legislation through the Senate Banking Committee by the end of September, the Senate Agriculture Committee in October and signed into law by 2026.
Though reports suggested lawmakers on each committee were discussing terms for the bill, the timeline seemed less likely amid a government shutdown and the holidays approaching.
Japan’s financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency (FSA), endorsed a project by the country’s largest financial institutions to jointly issue yen-backed stablecoins.
In a Friday statement, the FSA announced the launch of its “Payment Innovation Project” as a response to progress in “the use of blockchain technology to enhance payments.” The initiative involves Mizuho Bank, Mitsubishi UFJ Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Mitsubishi Corporation and its financial arm and Progmat, MUFG’s stablecoin issuance platform.
The announcement follows recent reports that those companies plan to modernize corporate settlements and reduce transaction costs through a yen-based stablecoin project built on MUFG’s stablecoin issuance platform Progmat. The institutions in question serve over 300,000 corporate clients.
The regulator noted that, starting this month, the companies will begin issuing payment stablecoins. The initiative aims to improve user convenience, enhance Japanese corporate productivity and innovate the local financial landscape.
The participating companies are expected to ensure that users are protected and informed about the systems they use. “After the completion of the pilot project, the FSA plans to publish the results and conclusions,” the announcement reads.
The announcement follows the Monday launch of Tokyo-based fintech firm JPYC’s Japan-first yen-backed stablecoin, along with a dedicated platform. The company’s president, Noriyoshi Okabe, said at the time that seven companies are already planning to incorporate the new stablecoin.
Recently, Japanese regulators have been hard at work setting new rules for the cryptocurrency industry. So much so that Bybit, the world’s second-largest crypto exchange by trading volume, announced it will pause new user registrations in the country as it adapts to the new conditions.
Local regulators seem to be opening up to the industry. Earlier this month, the FSA was reported to be preparing to review regulations that could allow banks to acquire and hold cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC) for investment purposes.
At the same time, Japan’s securities regulator was also reported to be working on regulations to ban and punish crypto insider trading. Following the change, Japan’s Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission would be authorized to investigate suspicious trading activity and impose fines on violators.
The European Union is considering a partial halt to its landmark artificial intelligence laws in response to pressure from the US government and Big Tech companies.
The European Commission plans to ease part of its digital rulebook, including the AI Act that took effect last year, as part of a “simplification package” that is to be decided on Nov. 19, the Financial Times reported on Friday.
If approved, the proposed halt could allow generative AI providers currently operating in the market a one-year compliance grace period and delay enforcement of fines for violations of AI transparency rules until August 2027.
“When it comes to potentially delaying the implementation of targeted parts of the AI Act, a reflection is still ongoing,” the commission’s Thomas Regnier told Cointelegraph, adding that the EC is working on the digital omnibus to present it on Nov. 19.
EU’s AI Act entered into force in August 2024
The commission proposed the first EU AI law in April 2021, with the mission of establishing a risk-based AI classification system.
Passed by the European Parliament and the European Council in 2023, the European AI Act entered into force in August 2024, with provisions expected to be implemented gradually over the next six to 36 months.
An excerpt from the EU AI Act’s implementation timeline. Source: ArtificialIntelligenceAct.eu
According to the FT, a bulk of the provisions for high-risk AI systems, which can pose “serious risks” to health, safety or citizens’ fundamental rights, are set to come into effect in August 2026.
With the draft “simplification” proposal, companies breaching the rules on the highest-risk AI use could reportedly receive a “grace period” of one year.
The proposal is still subject to informal discussions within the commission and with EU states and could still change ahead of its adoption on Nov. 19, the report noted.
“Various options are being considered, but no formal decision has been taken at this stage,” the EC’s Regnier told Cointelegraph, adding: “The commission will always remain fully behind the AI Act and its objectives.”
“AI is an incredibly disruptive technology, the full implications of which we are still only just beginning to fully appreciate,” Mercuryo co-founder and CEO Petr Kozyakov said, adding:
“Ultimately, Europe’s competitiveness will depend on its ability to set high standards without creating barriers that may risk letting innovation take place elsewhere.”
The EU’s potential suspension of parts of the AI Act underscores Brussels’ evolving approach to digital regulation amid intensifying global competition from the US and China.