UK anti-migrant activists, counter-protesters face off in Portsmouth | AFP

Hundreds of anti-immigration protesters and counter-demonstrators faced off in the southern English city of Portsmouth, at closely-watched duelling rallies which authorities feared could descend into unrest after violent scenes there the week before.

The arrival each year of tens of thousands of migrants aboard small boats has become highly contentious in Britain, relentlessly seized upon by the hard-right and helping fuel growing anti-immigration sentiment.

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