Northern Ireland: police attacked in another night of disturbances

Police have come under attack as violence flared during another night of sporadic disorder in parts of Northern Ireland.

Petrol bombs and bricks were thrown at officers in loyalist areas in Newtownabbey and Carrickfergus on Sunday night.

It was the second night in a row that trouble broke out at the Cloughfern roundabout in Newtownabbey on the outskirts of Belfast, although the violence was not as prolonged as on Saturday night.

There was also disorder in the North Road area of nearby Carrickfergus on Sunday night.

On Saturday, 30 petrol bombs were thrown at officers in Newtownabbey in what police described as an “orchestrated attack”.

On Friday, there were violent scenes in the Sandy Row area of Belfast as well.

In Derry, police have been subjected to sustained attacks across several nights in the last week in loyalist areas of the Waterside part of the city.

There were 27 police officers injured on Friday night across Belfast and Derry.

Tensions have soared within the loyalist community in recent months over post-Brexit trading arrangements which have been claimed to have created barriers between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.

Anger ramped up further last week following a controversial decision not to prosecute 24 Sinn Féin politicians for attending a large-scale republican funeral during Covid-19 restrictions.

All the main unionist parties have demanded the resignation of the Police Service of Northern Ireland’s chief constable, Simon Byrne, claiming he has lost the confidence of their community.

source: theguardian.com