Asylum seekers who chased hotel workers with knives in dispute over food jailed

The pair returned to the hotel at 6.20am and "aggressively" approached staff and demanded to be served lunch which met their dietary requirements.

When they were told this was not possible because breakfast was being served at the time, the duo "exploded".

Nouira, a migrant from Tunisia, started becoming violent and picked up part of the breakfast display before throwing it at hotel workers.

One member of staff admitted retaliating by throwing coffee at him, which is when "the real ruckus began".

Libyan migrant Zouari then became involved by picking up a chair before he grabbed a knife and threatened staff while chasing them.

Footage of the disorder, which lasted around five minutes, was caught on CCTV and played at Bournemouth Crown Court.

Staff and other asylum seekers staying at the hotel, which was at the centre of protests this summer, were eventually able to calm the situation.

Both men were charged with threatening a person with a bladed article.

Zouari was jailed for 15 months on Friday having received other convictions during his time in the UK while Nouira was given a 12-month sentence in May.

Zouari arrived in the UK in 2022 after travelling to the country illegally from Libya where he said he faced a lot of political trouble, especially because his family were pro-Gaddafi.

He claims he was tortured before he left, and his brother was killed.

The court was told that at the time of the incident, Zouari had been at the Roundhouse for around two months after "bouncing" between other asylum hotels.

Stuart Ellacott, prosecuting, said Zouari can be seen on CCTV chasing Vignesh Ponnusamy who "describes he thought he was going to be killed, it made him feel like it was his last day of his life; they were going to kill him as no one could stop them".

He added: "It was a prolonged incident, there was a risk of serious disorder and serious alarm or distress was caused to the victim."

Since the attack, Zouari has amassed other convictions for assaulting emergency workers, shoplifting and public disorder offences.

Lauren Matthews, mitigating, said: "Zouari is frustrated and annoyed that he essentially went along with his peers.

"He does express genuine remorse and accepts responsibility for his actions."

She added: "He just wants to live a peaceful life as much as possible. In Libya he trained in construction, something if he was given status in the UK he would with to pursue.

"He is someone who suffers from anxiety and depression and has a PTSD diagnosis, which means he is unable to regulate his emotions in the same way, particularly in respect of conflict."

Recorder Brian Fitzherbert said: "Although Nouira started it, it's my assessment that you played the leading role out of the two in what followed.

"You pose a risk to the public, I do not consider there to be a realistic prospect of rehabilitation."

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