SKIP TO MAIN CONTENT

Dozens of cops injured in Belfast clashes

Some 56 police officers were injured when they were attacked with bricks and other missiles by crowds in Belfast city centre.

belfast_violence_130811_B_aap_1684774188

2 min read

Published

Updated

Source: AAP


Skip to article content

Dozens of police were injured in Northern Ireland's capital Belfast on Friday night in clashes with pro-British Protestants protesting against a parade by Catholic republicans.

Some 56 police officers were injured, four requiring hospital treatment, when they were attacked with bricks, bottles and other missiles by crowds in the city centre, police said on Saturday.

Several cars were set on fire, while police used water cannon and fired baton rounds to try to disperse the rioters.

Seven people were arrested for offences ranging from riotous behaviour to hijacking, and Northern Ireland police chief Matt Baggott warned that many more arrests would follow.

"Those people had no intention of peaceful protest," he said.

News that makes sense

Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

"They lack self respect and they lack dignity."

The city's prisons would be "bulging" once all the culprits were rounded up, he said.

Belfast is currently hosting thousands of former police and fire officers from around the globe, who are in town for the World Police And Fire Games.

Protestant loyalist protesters had tried to block part of the route of a planned republican parade marking the anniversary of the introduction by British authorities of internment without trial on August 9, 1971.

It was one of the most controversial policies of The Troubles, the three decades of civil unrest in Northern Ireland between pro-British Protestants and Catholic republicans favouring a united Ireland.

Nearly 2,000 people were held without trial under the policy, the vast majority of them republicans.

Internment lasted until 1975. It was intended to restore order in the British province, but the deeply unpopular policy ultimately boosted recruitment to the paramilitary Irish Republican Army.

There were also clashes on Thursday night at an anti-internment bonfire near Belfast city centre, when eight police officers were injured and eight people were arrested.

Last month the city was hit by several nights of rioting, mainly by loyalist groups.

More than 3,500 people died during Northern Ireland's three decades of sectarian strife.

The 1998 Good Friday agreement, which set up a power-sharing government between republicans and loyalists, largely ended the violence, although sporadic attacks and bomb threats continue.


Get SBS News straight to your inbox

Sign up now for daily news from Australia and around the world. You can also subscribe to Insight's weekly newsletter for in-depth features and first-person stories.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Follow SBS News

Download our apps

Listen to our podcasts

Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service

Stream now

Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world