CRI听力:England Engulfed in Riots

Screaming police sirens have been roaring across London over the past few nights, after a demonstration in connection with the police shooting of a 29-year old man degenerated into rioting in the low-income Tottenham area of northern London over the weekend.

Rampant looting and arson subsequently spread to different areas across London and beyond, with the cities of Birmingham, Liverpool, Bristol.. and now Manchester and Wolverhampton seeing the spread of civil unrest.

The situation has prompted British Prime Minister David Cameron to break off his overseas holiday to come back and chair an emergency cabinet meeting.

"I'm determined. The government is determined that justice will be done and these people will see the consequences of their actions."

The original rioting saw over 50 people arrested after the first night.

However, that figure exploded to more than 400 as more violence broke out over the next couple of nights across London.

Despite having several thousand police officers on the ground, the scope of the violence was so wide spread that witnesses say the police could do little more than just stand by and watch.

In the midst of this, there have been calls for activating the army and bringing in a curfew.

However, the Prime Minister says for now, additional police officers is what's needed.

"Compared with the six thousand police, on the streets last night in London, there'll be some sixteen thousand officers tonight. There's already been 450 people arrested. We'll make sure court procedures and processes are speeded up. And people should expect to see more, many more arrests in the days to come."

The British Parliament, which is currently in recess, is being recalled for a day on Thursday to discuss the rioting.

And with the Olympics coming in less than a year, new questions about London's ability to police the Games are being brought to bear.

Tao Xinying is a Chinese journalist who's in London for the first time to cover an Olympic test event.

"I'm a little bit concerned as the unrest developed from a protest. But it's hard to say how the Games will work out, given that the earlier problems are realized, the faster they can be fixed."

Several football friendlies, including the one between England and the Netherlands, have been called off due to the rioting.

But a series of Olympic test events, including an outdoor beach volleyball tournament, are going ahead as scheduled.

The International Olympic Committee has issued a statement, saying it's confident that the London riots will not affect the security of the 2012 Olympics.

For CRI, I'm Tu Yun in London.