BELFAST (Reuters) – Crowds of young people from a pro-British area of Belfast set fire to a hijacked bus and attacked police with stones in the latest in a series of nightly outbreaks of violence that began last week.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was “deeply concerned” by the violence, which has injured dozens of police officers in recent days as protesters burned cars and threw petrol bombs at police.
The violence comes amid growing frustration from many members of the pro-British unionist community over the new trade barriers between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK that resulted from Britain’s exit from the European Union.
The British Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has also noted the police decision not to prosecute Irish nationalists Sinn Fein for a grand funeral last year that broke COVID-19 regulations.
In turn, Sinn Fein blamed the DUP for causing tensions with its strong opposition to the new trade agreements and its call in recent days for the region’s police chief to step down.
The Northern Ireland Police Service has said part of the violence was influenced by “criminal elements” who helped orchestrate the attacks.
Wednesday’s violence took place near Shankill Road, west of Belfast, near a so-called “wall of peace” that separates the community from the Irish nationalist stronghold of Falls Road, where they also met. youth groups.
Walls and fences were built between the two communities to prevent clashes during three decades of sectarian violence in Northern Ireland, which largely ended with a 1998 peace agreement.
“I am deeply concerned about the scenes of violence in Northern Ireland,” Johnson wrote in a Twitter post. “The way to resolve differences is through dialogue, not violence or crime.”
Leaders of Northern Ireland’s main political parties, Sinn Fein and the DUP, condemned the violence, noting in particular the hijacking of buses and the attack on a photojournalist by the Belfast Telegraph.
“These actions do not represent unionism or loyalty. They are a disgrace to Northern Ireland, “DUP leader Arlene Foster wrote in a Twitter post describing Sinn Fein rivals as” the real lawbreakers “.
Jason Cairnduff Reports; additional reports by Amanda Ferguson; writing by Conor Humphries; edited by Jonathan Oatis