Third night of violence in sectarian flashpoint as officers come under sustained attacks

This article is more than 8 years old

This article is more than 8 years old

Police have came under attack again in north Belfast on Tuesday with officers being pelted with fireworks and other missiles.

Motorists have been advised to avoid the Carlisle Circus/Lower Antrim Road area after a third night of violence in the sectarian flashpoint.

According to local reports around 200 people have gathered in Denmark Street at the Lower Shankill estate entrance – the focal point of violent disorder since Sunday afternoon.

There are unconfirmed reports that up to eight police snatch squads have moved into the area to make arrests within the last hour. Police confirmed that officers are dealing with disorder in the area and that they have come under sustained attack.

Up to 40 PSNI landrovers have been deployed in the district to quell further trouble at this latest sectarian interface to flare up due to the loyalist parades dispute.

Earlier in the day the Police Federation of Northern Ireland said that 1,200 Ulster police officers have been injured over the past seven years in riots related to the type of loyalist marching dispute currently raging in north Belfast.

The federation said that the casualty figures, which include 62 officers hurt over the past 48 hours, showed that police officers on frontline duty in the province stood a one-in-four chance of getting injured in riots.