Around 15 police officers have been injured after public disorder broke out in Ballymena and missiles were thrown.
Police Service Northern Ireland (PSNI) condemned the violence that broke out after a protest in support of the family of a girl who was the victim of an alleged sexual assault in the town at the weekend.
Officers were originally present at a peaceful vigil in order to “ensure an appropriate and proportionate policing response, due to the large number of people who had gathered in the area” when a number of masked individuals broke away from the vigil and began to build barricades, stockpiling missiles and attacking properties, the force said.
Some of the injured officers required hospital treatment and two police vehicles were also damaged during the disorder. Multiple petrol bombs, fireworks, heavy masonry and bricks were thrown at police by masked rioters. One arrest has been made so far.
The force reported damage to a number of properties. Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson said: “The shocking scenes of disorder on the streets of Ballymena have to be condemned in the strongest terms.
“This is not the way. People have been injured and public property damaged. We are engaging with groups that have been affected by this disorder and we are gathering evidence, CCTV and other footage to progress criminal investigations.
“I want to put on record my appreciation and gratitude to our officers who were determined to restore order to the town in the most challenging of circumstances with bricks, furniture and petrol bombs all thrown in their direction. They worked fearlessly to try to bring calm to the most volatile of situations. I’m also grateful to our partners in the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service and Northern Ireland Ambulance Service for their support throughout.
“I would strongly urge anyone who was involved in yesterday’s rioting and disorder to think long and hard about their actions. Violence and disorder will only place people at greater risk. Our priority is to keep the community safe and we need everyone to work with us, we want better for Ballymena and Northern Ireland.”
Social media footage showed plumes of fire and smoke near what appeared to be residential buildings, with police present at the scene. Another clip appeared to show a masked man throwing an object at police vans as a crowd looked on.
Hundreds of protesters initially gathered in Ballymena in response to a sexual assault case involving two teenage boys.
Police charged the teenagers, who can’t be identified due to their ages, with attempted rape after investigating a serious sexual assault on a teenage girl in the Clonavon Terrace area on Saturday evening. They appeared before Coleraine Magistrates Court earlier on Monday, and the charges were read to them by a Romanian interpreter.
Local media reported that people had initially gathered peacefully to support the family of the girl, but later in the evening several houses were attacked by masked youths, who could be seen kicking in doors.
The attacks on these properties are being investigated as racially motivated hate attacks, police said.
Justice minister Naomi Long criticised violence against officers, saying: “I am absolutely appalled by the disturbing scenes in Ballymena yesterday evening during which PSNI officers were injured, residents terrorised, and properties damaged.”
She added: “There is absolutely no place in our society for such disorder and there can be no justification for it. I would appeal to those involved to seriously consider their actions and step back from this behaviour before someone is seriously injured or worse.”
North Antrim MP Jim Allister linked the violence to tensions growing over immigration in Ballymena.
He said: “Within Ballymena there have been rising concerns about the sheer scale of migration into the town and that would have been a factor in the wholly peaceful protest.
“All that to be distinguished from the wanton violence which then followed, with obviously a minority of that peaceful crowd wanting to take advantage of that to visit violence which wasn’t wanted or warranted, hence the scenes that we saw.
“It is very distressing to see scenes of violence on the streets of Ballymena.”
Mr Allister said tensions have been building in the town “for a considerable period of time”.
The MP said he had spoken to the family of the girl who was the victim of the alleged sexual assault, who did not want to see violent scenes.
He said: “Sadly the narrative has been diverted, and it has been diverted by those who wrongly and foolishly involved in violence and made the story something that what it otherwise should be.
“My message is the violence should stop. The concerns are there, I am certainly aware of them, I hear them and there needs now to be a period of calm and justice needs to take its course.”
A 29-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of riotous and disorderly behaviour, attempted criminal damage and resisting police. He remains in police custody.
Officers have advised motorists and pedestrians to steer clear of Clonavon Road until further notice.
