HispanicBusiness

Sixteen-thousand police officers took to the streets of London last night as much of the capital shut down early ahead of more feared rioting, looting and arson.

Plans to prevent a fourth night of violence on the streets of the capital appeared to have worked but trouble flared in Manchester, where rioters wearing masks and hoods set fire to shops, smashed windows and got into running battles with hundreds of riot police officers.

By mid-afternoon, most businesses across London had closed their doors and many firms sent staff home amid concerns about further mob violence.

Prime Minister David Cameron flew back from his holiday early to join police chiefs in warning rioters they would face the full weight of the law.

The Metropolitan Police, which has been accused of losing control of parts of London, flooded the streets with nearly three times as many officers as were on duty during Monday night's disorder. Some 30 other forces lent officers to bolster the numbers for a massive policing operation intended to put a stop to the horrific scenes witnessed across the country since Saturday.

Scotland Yard ruled out involving the Army but said police were "not scared" of using plastic bullets to bring the unprecedented riots under control.

The violence first erupted in Tottenham, north London, on Saturday night after a peaceful protest over the fatal police shooting of Mark Duggan, 29, last Thursday. After chairing a meeting of the Government's emergency committee, Cobra, the Prime Minister announced that Parliament would be recalled for a day tomorrow to discuss the developments.

Mr Cameron pledged to speed up court procedures to deal with the "many more" arrests expected as police scour hundreds of hours of CCTV for evidence about those responsible for the violence.

He warned the young people involved in the riots: "You will feel the full force of the law. And if you are old enough to commit these crimes, you are old enough to face the punishment."

Hundreds of people were arrested overnight after the worst rioting in decades as looting, violence and arson spread across London and to other major cities, including Birmingham and Bristol.

Extra police officers were also on the streets of Liverpool after violence erupted in the south of the city on Monday night.

Cars and wheelie bins were set alight on a trail of destruction which stretched from the city centre to Toxteth, Dingle and Wavertree. Merseyside Police pledged to reclaim the streets.

The worst of last night's violence appeared to be in Manchester.

Rioters set fire to a Miss Selfridge shop in the city centre and hundreds of youths ran down streets smashing windows, while hundreds broke into the huge Arndale shopping centre, smashed open with a large stone slab.

Hundreds of riot police had tried to move crowds who had gathered on Piccadilly Gardens.

Greater Manchester Police said it had been "engaged" with dealing with outbreaks of minor disorder in Salford and Manchester city centre in the afternoon, involving "a small number of youths".

Assistant Chief Constable Terry Sweeney said: "A handful of shops have been attacked by groups of youths who have congregated and seem intent on committing disorder.

"We have already made a number of arrests."