Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron promised Thursday to crack down on street gangs, saying "the fightback has well and truly begun" against those who rioted across Britain.

Several major cities around England have suffered days of violence and looting in some of the worst rioting seen in years.

Here are some details of major rioting in Britain over the past 30 years:

* April 1980 - Bristol

-- The Black and White Caf, which had a reputation as a center for drugs, was raided by police, triggering riots in the St Paul's area of Bristol. Tension between black youths and the police had been growing in the area, with many black youths feeling discriminated against. The cafe was demolished in 2005.

* April 1981 - Brixton, south London

-- Tension between the police and the black community had been high for some time. The stabbing and subsequent death of a black man was blamed on police brutality and sparked a riot. Damages were estimated at up to 7.5 million pounds ($12 million) and 365 police and civilians were wounded.

-- Brixton saw more rioting in 1985, when a black woman was accidentally shot during a police raid, in 1995 when a young black man died in police custody, and most recently in 2001, after a man was shot by police who mistakenly believed he was carrying a gun.

* July 1981 - Toxteth, Liverpool

-- Rioting was triggered by the arrest of 20-year-old Leroy Alphonse Cooper whose supporters said he was subsequently mistreated in custody. Nine days of violence followed.

* October 1985 - Broadwater Farm, Tottenham, London

-- Violence between youths from the Broadwater estate in Tottenham and the police erupted when a woman suffered heart failure after a police raid on her home. Shots were fired wounding several people and PC Keith Blakelock was killed when he was stabbed by rioters while protecting a firefighter putting out a blaze.

* March 1990 - Poll tax riots, London

-- When Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government introduced the poll tax -- a levy on property imposed regardless of wealth -- 100,000 people turned out for a protest in central London which quickly turned violent.

* 1999 - Anti-capitalist protest, London

-- Demonstrators clashed with riot police, burned cars and stormed a major financial exchange during an anti-capitalist protest in June that caused 2 million pounds of damage.

* May-July 2001 - London May Day riot and violence in northern England

-- Some 5,000 anti-capitalist activists brought the commercial heart of London to a standstill with violence and vandalism. Police said they had arrested 92 people after good-natured demonstrations turned ugly. Shops in Oxford Street and Tottenham Court Road were smashed as small breakaway groups of demonstrators ran amok and a hardcore of protesters clashed with riot police.

-- Riots in Oldham and Burnley were the result of tensions between the white majority and growing ethnic minority communities. Fighting broke out between far-right groups including the National Front and Asian businessmen, as well as the Anti Nazi League. Over 300 people were wounded and more than 350 arrested.

* April 2009 - Anti G20 protests, London

-- Violent confrontations between anti-capitalist demonstrators, environmental campaigners and riot police broke out in London during two days of protests in April as the leaders of the G20 nations attended an economic summit.

* November 2010 - Student riots, London

-- The newly elected Conservative-Liberal coalition government unveiled a series of higher education spending cuts and an increase in the cap on tuition fees. A planned peaceful demonstration saw students from across Britain descending on London. The protest turned violent when a small group attacked Conservative Party headquarters, smashing the windows, damaging the interior and throwing a fire-extinguisher off the roof.

* March 2011 - TUC march, London

-- Masked youths battled riot police and attacked banks and luxury stores in central London on March 26, overshadowing a protest by more than a quarter of a million Britons against government spending cuts. More than 200 people were arrested after anarchist groups splintered from the main union-led protest march and fought running battles with police.

* August 2011 - London, Manchester and other major cities

-- Rioting broke out around major cities in England including Manchester and Liverpool in the northwest and Birmingham in central England. Gangs ransacked stores causing millions of pounds of damage. Four people were killed in the violence. At least 1,300 people were arrested of whom 900 were in London.

-- The riots broke out on August 6 in north London's Tottenham district, when a protest over the police shooting of a suspect two days earlier led to violence.

Court G20 London United kingdom