16, 000 Police officers on the streets of London

The Prime minister David cameron has instructed that more police officers be deployed onto the streets of London which has been riot-torn for three nights now.

Cameron - having chaired an emergency committee - said all police leave had been cancelled and that 16,000 officers would be on the streets of Britain's capital, compared with the 6000 of earlier today.

The meeting was held after widespread violence and looting in London. Outbreaks of violence have also been reported in other cities, including Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Bristol.

There have been horrific scenes in parts of London with fires burning out of control in a number of areas.

Liverpool police said a small number of vehicles were set on fire and there were reports of some criminal damage.

A huge fire in Croydon caused big problems for firefighters. Later in the day a massive fire broke out at the Sony Distribution Centre in Enfield.

The 70m building was ablaze from around midnight UK time and witnesses described seeing looters running from the scene just before a series of massive explosions.

Rioting and looting spread across and beyond London city as hooded youths set fire to cars and buildings, smashed shop windows and hurled bottles and stones at police
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