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Concerns have been raised after fresh red, white and blue paint appeared outside a North Belfast school.

The paint has appeared on kerbstones at the entrance into Holy Cross Girls Primary School in the Ardoyne district of the city.

The letters ‘LA’ have also been painted at the entrance. It is unclear what LA stands for, however some in the area have suggested it means ‘Loyalist Ardoyne’.

Paul McCusker, an SDLP councillor in the area, said there is “a lot of anger” locally following the development.

He added: “There’s been so much good work in the area over the last 16 years since the problems at Holy Cross, work at community relations, at promoting the idea of shared spaces. But for this to happen, especially with the school still open, is very worrying.

“If it was green, white and orange being painted outside a school I’d be the first person out and calling for it to be removed. And the letters LA right at the school gate, it’s just very intimidating for people. Obviously the Council or Transport NI won’t remove it unless there’s been communication with people in the community.

“But I would call on unionism to step up here and show some leadership. I really don’t want this situation to escalate, we need political leadership here.”

The issue has also been raised on the Greater Ardoyne Residents Collective Facebook page.

There has been no statement from the DUP on the issue this evening. However, in a tweet Dale Pankhurst, a unionist political activist in the area, said that during the marching season “many unionist communities rightfully engage in cultural expression”, which includes the painting of kerbstones. He added that the activity at the minute comes against a backdrop of “cultural warfare” by Sinn Fein.

He accused GARC of trying to “heighten tension” by highlighting the issue and calling for statutory agencies to remove the paint.

He added that the “unionist community has suffered much attempted cultural erosion over the previous years and authorities entering into unionist heartlands to remove anything that can be connected with Britishness” would “inevitably damage community relations”.

One loyalist activist who spoke to locals in the PUL side of Ardoyne said the kerbs are repainted red, white and blue every year. They added: “It’s disappointing that these things still happen when people are trying to defuse tension, but there’s going to a blowback against what is seen as continuing demands from Sinn Fein . That’s the way it’s always been.”

The PSNI confirmed they are aware of the situation.

Inspector David McBride said: “Police received a report in relation to kerb stones being painted in the Ardoyne Road area of North Belfast today (Thursday, 29 June). Enquiries into this are ongoing.”

In 2001 the school was at the centre of an infamous standoff when it was blockaded by loyalists meaning schoolgirls needed a police escort to move from the nationalist end of the district to the building which sits at the unionist side.