Morning:
9°c
Twenty-one police officers have been injured in Northern Ireland after one of the worst nights of violence for years.
The trouble, blamed by Sinn Fein on the Real IRA, flared following Orange Order parades across the region.
In Belfast nine officers were injured and three vehicles hijacked. Police said they fired 18 baton rounds.
Earlier in Killyleagh, County Down, a woman flute band member was killed and a boy aged nine injured when they were hit by a car involved in a parade.
A Police Service of Northern Ireland spokesman said the tragedy appeared to be an accident. The woman, who has not been named, was 30 and in a band playing in the parade.
In Belfast's Ardoyne area, petrol bombs, fireworks, stones and bottles were hurled at police, who used water cannon and baton rounds to fend off attackers. Two hijacked vans were pushed at police lines.
Sinn Fein Assembly member Gerry Kelly, blaming the Real IRA, said: "This evening's actions expose very clearly the anti-peace process and sectarian agenda which feeds these factions. It has nothing whatever to do with Irish republicanism."
Click here to see more pictures of the riots
In the Memorial Hall area of Londonderry, 11 petrol bombs were thrown during yesterday's disturbances as rival groups clashed after an Orange order parade.
In Londonderry there were minor disturbances and there has also been trouble in Rasharkin, County Antrim and Armagh.
Police assistant chief constable Alistair Finlay said: "They displayed the worst possible face of Northern Ireland - a face of bigotry, sectarianism and intolerance that is not representative of the vast majority of people who have moved on and embraced a peaceful future."
In Rasharkin, officers sustained minor injuries when they were struck by stones and bricks by youths in the village.
Petrol bombs were hurled. One man was arrested.
There were disturbances during the return leg of the Twelfth parade in Londonderry and minor trouble in the Butcher's Gate area where one policeman sustained a slight injury.
Police came under attack with petrol bombs and paint during disturbances in Armagh following a security alert at Friary Road in which a minor explosion occurred.
Four people have been arrested for public order offences following a number of minor disturbances.
At least two cars were also stolen and set alight on Friary Road.
Reader views (1)
These riots were orchestrated by dissident republican terrorists. That is what you get when you appease terrorists and other extremists.
The water cannon is used at low pressure to satisfy the demands of the human rights lobby. It is nothing more than a luke warm shower.
Sinn Fein Assembly member Gerry Kelly, blaming the Real IRA, said: "This evening's actions expose very clearly the anti-peace process and sectarian agenda which feeds these factions. It has nothing whatever to do with Irish republicanism." Kelly is a convicted terrorist, he privately supports this kind of action as it helps to justify his position and ensures the continued disproportionate public funding of projects in nationalist areas.
These riots, along with other attacks on Police and the state, will continue because the perpetrators are repeatedly allowed to get away with it by a government that will bend over backwards to appease the enemies of peace and democracy.
- Rodney S, Belfast, 14/07/2009 12:29
Report abuse
