Police said all London police holding cells were full and prisoners were being taken to surrounding communities. At least 100 have been charged, including an 11-year old. Police were also monitoring Twitter, and warned that those who posted messages inciting the violence could face arrest.

Three people were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a police officer was struck by a car in north London early Tuesday. About 44 police officers have been injured in the violence.

The images of London's violence recalled the 2005 riots in France, when hooded and masked youths fought police in three weeks of raging overnight battles in housing projects, confrontations that became a challenge to the French state itself.

Mass deployments of police eventually subdued the rioters, but tensions between French police and youth in the projects continue today, with periodic clashes between youths with Molotov cocktails and police with tear gas. French police say between 30 and 50 cars are set on fire during an average week. On the most fiery night of the 2005 riots, more than 1,400 cars went up in flames.

Violence in London first broke out late Saturday in the low-income, multiethnic northern district of Tottenham, where protesters demonstrated against the fatal police shooting of Mark Duggan, a 29-year-old father of four who was gunned down in disputed circumstances Thursday.

A brief inquest hearing into Duggan's death was being held Tuesday, though it will likely be several months before a full hearing.

Duggan's death stirred old animosities and racial tensions similar to those that prompted massive UK race riots in the 1980s, despite efforts by London police to build better relations with the city's ethnic communities.

But, as the latest unrest spread, some pointed to rising social tensions in Britain as the government slashes 80 billion pounds ($130 billion) from public spending by 2015 to reduce the huge deficit, swollen after the country spent billions bailing out its foundering banks.

Sony Corp said a major blaze had broken out at its distribution center near Enfield, north London, damaging DVDs and other products. So many fires were being fought in the capital that Thames Water warned that some customers could face water pressure drops. In the Clapham Junction area of south London, a mob stole masks from a party store to disguise their identities and then set the building on fire.

Dozens of people attacked shops in Birmingham's main retail district, and clashed with police in Liverpool and Bristol.

"This is the uprising of the working class. We're redistributing the wealth," said Bryn Phillips, a 28-year-old self-described anarchist, as young people emerged from a store with chocolate bars and ice cream cones.

Some residents called for police to deploy water cannons to disperse rioters, or call on the military for support. They questioned the strength of leadership within London's police department - particularly after a wave of resignations prompted by the country's phone-hacking scandal.

Youths used text messages, instant messaging on BlackBerry phones and social media platforms such as Twitter to coordinate attacks and stay ahead of the police.

About 100 young people clashed with police in the Camden and Chalk Farm areas of north London on Monday night. In the Peckham district of south London, where a building was set ablaze along with a bus - which was not carrying passengers - onlookers said the scene resembled a conflict zone. Cars were torched in nearby Lewisham, and in west London's Ealing suburb the windows of each store along entire streets had been smashed.

"There's been tension for a long time. The kids aren't happy. They hate the police," said Matthew Yeoland, a 43-year-old teacher watching the unrest in Peckham. "It's like a war zone and the police weren't doing anything."

Police said Duggan was shot dead last week when police from Operation Trident - the unit that investigates gun crime in the black community - stopped a cab he was riding in.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission, which is investigating the shooting, said a "non-police firearm" was recovered at the scene. But the Guardian newspaper reported that a bullet in the officer's radio was police-issue, indicating Duggan may not have fired at the officer.

Duggan's partner, Semone Wilson, insisted that her fiance was not connected to gang violence and urged police to offer more information about his death. But she rejected suggestions that the riots were linked to protests over his death.

"It got out of hand. It's not connected to this anymore. This is out of control," she said.

The past year has seen mass protests against the tripling of student tuition fees and cuts to public sector pensions. In November, December and March, small groups broke away from large marches in London to loot. In the most notorious episode, rioters attacked a Rolls-Royce carrying Prince Charles and his wife Camilla to a charity concert.

However, the full impact of spending cuts has yet to be felt and the unemployment rate is stable - although it remains highest among youth, especially in areas like Tottenham, Hackney and Croydon.

Some residents insisted joblessness was not to blame. "It's just an excuse for the young ones to come and rob shops," said Brixton resident Marilyn Moseley, 49.