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Riots have broken out in the streets of Newtownabbey, near Belfast, amid fears that there may be another night of trouble ahead in Northern Ireland.
Three cars were hijacked and set on fire in the O’Neill / Doagh Road loyalist area Saturday night.
A large crowd of onlookers gathered to watch the riots.
Police said Saturday night they were responding following reports of disorder at the Cloughfern roundabout in the O’Neill’s Road area of Newtownabbey.
Video footage emerged of burned cars and a police van being attacked.
Earlier, the Northern Ireland Police Service said that two children, aged 13 and 14, are among eight people arrested in connection with the riots in a loyal area of Belfast.
Three men aged 25, 21 and 18 and a 19-year-old woman have been charged with disturbances.
All four are due to appear before the Belfast Magistrates Court on Friday 30 April. All charges will be reviewed by the Public Ministry.
Three men aged 17, 14 and 13 have been charged with disturbances.
The trio are due to appear in Belfast Youth Court, also on April 30. The charges will also be reviewed by the Public Ministry.
The charges are related to the disorder that occurred in the Sandy Row area in South Belfast on Friday 2 April.
A 19-year-old man also arrested after last night’s disorder has been released on police bail pending further investigations.
Fifteen police officers were injured Friday night after being attacked on Sandy Row by a crowd of young people, mostly throwing bottles, bricks and fireworks.
“It is a tragedy that any child, because considering that a 13 year old is a little child, I think it is a tragedy that any child in Northern Ireland is sitting in a custody room this morning and facing a criminal investigation, the possibility of being charged and the possibility of facing a criminal conviction, ”said Chief Superintendent Simon Walls.
On Saturday afternoon he urged anyone with influence in the loyal community to discourage youth from causing violence.
“It shouldn’t happen. . . It is not the way to resolve tensions or arguments. “
A 13-year-old boy is among eight people arrested in connection with the riots. Heavy masonry, metal rods, fireworks and manhole covers were thrown at the police.
Meanwhile, Derry experienced a fifth night in a row of unrest in the mostly trade union Waterside area of the city.
Derry City and Strabane area commander Chief Superintendent Darrin Jones said police received reports Friday night of youth gathered in the Nelson Drive and Tullyally areas.
“Upon their arrival, they were subjected to sustained attacks by a large group of youth and young adults who threw masonry, bottles, gasoline bombs and fireworks,” he said.
“As a result, 12 officers suffered injuries, including head, leg and foot injuries.” Mr. Jones also said that a nursing home was damaged in the Nelson Drive area during the trouble, causing “untold fear and anguish” for residents.
Northern Ireland DUP Prime Minister Arlene Foster has appealed to young people not to “crawl in disorder” over Easter weekend, saying violence “will not make things any better”.
She said: “I know that many of our youth are greatly frustrated by the events of this past week, but injuring police officers will not make things any better. And I send my strong support to all the rank and file police officers who are on duty this Easter weekend. I appeal to our young people not to be swept up in the disorder that leads to criminal convictions and ruining their own lives. “
He also asked parents to “play their part and be proactive in protecting their young adults.”
‘Speeding up the rhetoric’
Sinn Féin TD Eoin Ó Broin said loyalist and loyalist political leaders needed to defuse the situation in Northern Ireland and ensure that Friday night’s riot is not repeated.
Ó Broin said union politicians had been “stepping up the rhetoric” around the Northern Ireland protocol for several weeks and loyalist organizations staged protests “and then we have this street violence.”
“The real losers in this in the first place are the young people who are now arrested and are going to have a criminal record, it is the Sandy Row communities and the town who have to get up today and clean up their community.
“And then the political stability of what is a very precarious position at the minute in the North.”
When asked by Katie Hannon on RTÉ Radio One if Sinn Féin had done enough as a result of mounting tensions following a controversial decision not to prosecute 24 Sinn Féin politicians for attending Republican Bobby Storey’s funeral during Covid restrictions- 19, replied: “People have been wrong and I think Michelle [O’Neill’s] statement at the time made it very clear. But what also happened was that people rightly asked the PSNI for an investigation. A report was then sent to the Public Ministry. They have made their recommendations and their recommendations are not to proceed with the prosecutions ”.
He said political leaders, including Sinn Féin, had to make sure they did everything they could to properly manage the public health message.
“We need everyone to work together to defuse the situation, particularly in terms of how some unionists are using the protocol issue in very, very politically questionable ways.”
Earlier, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Brandon Lewis, called for calm and described the riots as “completely unacceptable”.
“Violence is never the answer. There is no place for it in society… I fully support PSNI’s call for calm,” Lewis said.
He added that his thoughts were with the eight wounded officers.
Disorder has erupted amid continuing tensions within the loyalty in Northern Ireland.
Some loyalists and trade unionists are angered by post-Brexit trade deals that they claim have created barriers between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. All major unionist parties have demanded the resignation of PSNI police chief Simon Byrne, claiming he has lost the trust of his community over how the police handled Storey’s funeral.
In a statement on the PSNI Twitter account, Chief Supt Walls called for calm.
“So far, eight officers have been injured. . . His injuries include burns, head and leg injuries. Seven people have been arrested at the scene. I call on everyone involved to stop this appalling behavior immediately. Police are trying to protect people living in the Shaftesbury Square, Donegall Road and Sandy Row areas and it is completely unacceptable that my officers are being subjected to sustained attacks. “
The Friday night incident began in the Shaftesbury Square area before moving to nearby Sandy Row.
The Sandy Row riots, which unfolded before a planned loyalist protest in the area, was met with widespread political condemnation Friday night. However, union leaders were accused of creating a feverish climate and stoking tensions.
Alliance Justice Minister Naomi Long said: “This does not benefit anyone, not the officers who deal with it or most of the young people who risk their future by participating in it. It is up to leaders to behave responsibly and reduce the inflammatory rhetoric of the past few days. Words have consequences. “
Disorder
SDLP South Belfast MP Claire Hanna expressed her disappointment, saying it was “sad to see the mess on Sandy Row. The usual suspects without vision provoke tensions to obtain electoral gains. . . there is a better way. “
DUP MLA for the area Christopher Stalford said that “given the actions of the Deputy Prime Minister, some people may believe that they can break the rules. That is not the case: two mistakes do not do good. The vast majority of the people involved in this incident were under the age of 18. I don’t want young people to act frustrated by recent events and end up in trouble with the law and end up with a criminal record. “
Sinn Féin MP for West Belfast Paul Maskey said the DUP and political unionism “are failing working-class union communities through their dangerous and irresponsible rhetoric that continues to provoke heightened tensions.
He said this is a time of calm and responsible leadership.
“I call on the DUP and political unionism to show leadership, put an end to their dangerous rhetoric and ensure an urgent reduction in tensions.”
In response to the incident, Ulster MLA unionist Doug Beattie tweeted: “Please stop. . . This is not going to help anyone or change anything. It hurts and endangers your own community, undermines any grievances you may have, and you will accomplish nothing. “- PA
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