Tense London Burns a 3rd Night

Fires blazed across London as riots continued unabated into a third night in Britain's capital city and even beyond. Metropolitan Police's Twitter feed says that more than 225 people have been arrested, but the official response is coming under fire and one pub manager tells the BBC that the scene is "an absolute war zone." The latest:

• British PM David Cameron cut short a vacation in Italy, and was returning home overnight, notes NPR. He'll meet with his emergency response team first thing.

• Over at the Atlantic, Rebecca Greenfield parses the role of the BlackBerry in the spread of the riots, noting that the device is hugely popular in the UK, and BlackBerry Messenger allows much more private messaging. RIM is said to be cooperating with police in figuring out whether the BlackBerry played a role in organizing.
• London's 2012 Olympics loom large over the riots, notes the AP. "You can imagine how stretched the police would be if this were to occur during the Olympics," says an expert.
• British police were calling off soccer matches and many public events, reports the AP, because, as one club was told, "of the need to focus police resources elsewhere."
• Egyptian bloggers are watching the events in London, and giving their two cents, notes the New York Times. One take: "Egyptians and Tunisians took revenge for Khaled Said and Bouazizi by peacefully toppling their murdering regimes, not stealing DVD players."

(More 2012 London Olympics stories.)