Community groups held a peace rally Sunday in England's second-largest city against the hit-and-run attack that claimed three lives during rioting in Birmingham. Scores of people gathered in the neighbourhood where three Muslim men Haroon Jahan, 20, and brothers Shazad Ali, 30, and Abdul Musavir, 31 were mowed down Wednesday by a car travelling at high speed.
The trio had been with a larger group guarding a row of Pakistani-owned shops from looters. The killings had threatened to ignite clashes between the area's South Asian and black gangs, but appeals for calm and unity from Jahan's father have so far been heeded.
The father, Tariq Jahan, joined other victims' family members in addressing the crowds Sunday in Winson Green from a stage bearing the banner "One City, One Voice for Peace."
Wearing a T-shirt bearing the names of the three victims, Jahan told the crowd that seeing the community come together gave him strength to believe the three men did not die in vain.
Abdul Qudoos, the elder brother of Shazad and Musavir, broke down as he thanked the audience for support and urged the community to remain united. "Please do not divide, be together, "he said in an emotional address. "Let people know that we are all good."
Two males have been charged in the attack. Joshua Donald, 26, and a 17-year-old boy whose name was withheld because of his age, were arraigned Sunday at Birmingham Magistrates Court on three counts each of murder. Both were remanded in custody after brief hearings.
The magistrates court is normally closed Sundays, but like many other British courts, has worked unprecedented hours and stayed open through the weekend to help process the scores of defendants charged in connection with the riots. The Justice Ministry said that 1,156 suspects had appeared in court as of late Saturday.
Justice Minister Jonathan Djanogly acknowledged the "difficult work" facing courts, prisons, probation, youth and emergency services, saying he had met with court staff and judges who had worked 30 hours straight. Thousands of people have been arrested countrywide, with more than 800 charged in London alone.