Rioters have been blasted with a water cannon by police amid fresh clashes in west Belfast as the White House said it was “concerned” at several days of disorder.
Northern Ireland secretary Brandon Lewis arrived in Belfast for talks with political leaders to discuss the violence that has gripped parts of the region over the past week.
He gave a statement on landing to praise the joint condemnation of violence from first minister Arlene Foster and deputy first minister Michelle O’Neill, from Sinn Fein, through the Northern Ireland Executive.
Violent scenes including attacks on police, petrol bombings and rioting have taken place repeatedly in Belfast and Derry throughout the past week.
The unrest has been attributed to tension in loyalist communities over the Northern Ireland protocol on Brexit - which has created economic barriers between the region and the rest of the UK - and the police’s handling of alleged coronavirus regulation breaches by Sinn Fein at the funeral of republican Bobby Storey.
Read more:
- Northern Ireland riots: Bus hijacked and set on fire in Belfast
- The violence in Northern Ireland highlights Boris Johnson’s dangerous Brexit miscalculations
- Northern Ireland violence: What is fuelling unrest in loyalist areas?
- Violence breaks out in Northern Ireland again as masked loyalists march in streets
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