POLITICAL leaders in Northern Ireland have united to condemn violence in Derry amid increased tensions in the city ahead of Orange parades today.
Shots were fired at police officers on Tuesday night in what was described by the PSNI as a “blatant bid to murder police”, while around sixteen petrol bombs and five paint bombs were thrown from the Bogside area.
A joint statement signed yesterday by Sinn Fein, the DUP, SDLP, UUP, Alliance and Green Party condemned “any illegal activity” and appealed for calm.
“Attacks on the police have been ongoing for a number of days alongside other violence including sectarian attacks on houses, petrol bombs thrown at the police, intimidation of contractors, vehicles hi-jacked and attacks on sheltered accommodation,” it said.
“The shots fired last night were a clear and obvious attempt to murder police officers. There must be a strong, clear and united voice against those who would engage in such disgraceful violence. As a society we must all stand with those who maintain law and order and who protect all sides of our community. We condemn any illegal activity and urge those who are damaging their own community and intimidating their neighbours to stop. We would urge people to work with the police to bring those involved in criminality to justice. We want to see a society where people can live together without the threat of intimidation or violence.”
Police were also attacked early yesterday in Belfast after a bonfire was set alight following a court ruling to drastically reduce its height to less than three metres tall. Around 100 officers in riot gear were called to Bloomfield Walkway in the east of the city as the Fire Service tried to protect nearby homes.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel