Homes and cars have been set on fire during a second night of violence in Ballymena as police condemned the unrest as “racist thuggery”.
Dramatic scenes unfolded in the Northern Ireland town as rioters hurled petrol bombs, fireworks and glass bottles at police officers. Seventeen officers were injured with some requiring hospital treatment, the Police Service Northern Ireland said.
Riot police wearing armour and carrying shields were deployed to the Co Antrim town as hundreds gathered in the area, with rioters smashing windows and damaging the doors of homes.
Two homes, which suffered significant smoke damage, remained sealed off on Tuesday. Damage was caused to a nearby property while a woman and two children were still inside, while the windows of several business units were smashed in the area.
The violence originally flared after a vigil in support of the family of a teenage girl who was the victim of an alleged sexual assault in the town over the weekend.
Two 14-year-old boys appeared in court on Monday, charged with attempted rape. The charges were read to the teenagers by a Romanian interpreter.
PSNI said it had made a third arrest in connection with their investigation into the serious sexual assault on Monday evening. The 28-year-old man was unconditionally released from police custody following questioning.
The scenes of violence were described as "racist thuggery" by a senior officer, while Northern Ireland’s first minister Michelle O’Neill called the two nights of violence “racist and sectarian” adding that the rioting was “abhorrent and must stop immediately.”
During Prime Minister’s Questions, Sir Keir Starmer condemned the violence. “I utterly condemn the violence that we have seen overnight in Ballymena and in other parts of Northern Ireland,” he said.
Police fired less-than-lethal rounds at some of those gathered and also used a water cannon to disperse the crowd. Calm was restored to the town around 1am, but the force reported further disorder in Newtownabbey and Carrickfergus, with some incidents in north Belfast.
The peaceful vigil began on Monday around 7.30pm heading towards the Clonavon Terrace area of Ballymena. Police were present due to the large number of people who had gathered when a number of masked individuals broke away from the gathering and began to build barricades, stockpiling missiles and attacking properties nearby.
Members of the crowd turned on police and attacked officers with petrol bombs and masonry as the disorder continued in the nearby vicinity of Galgorm Street, Linenhall Street, as well as Larne Road Link near the Braid.
North Antrim MP Jim Allister said on Monday that he had spoken to the family of the alleged victim, who had said they did not want to see violent scenes.
“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,” he added.
A 29-year-old man has been charged with riotous behaviour after being arrested during disorder in Ballymena on Monday night. The man, who is due to appear before Ballymena Magistrates' Court on 3 July, has also been charged with disorderly behaviour, attempted criminal damage and resisting police.
PSNI assistant chief constable Ryan Henderson said other arrests are expected following the examination of video footage as the force are “actively working to identify those responsible for last night's racially motivated disorder in Ballymena and bring them to justice.”
Mr Henderson said the force had a significant operation in place over the coming days in case there was any repeat of the disturbances on Monday night in the Co Antrim town, calling for the attacks to be “loudly condemned by all right-thinking people”.
“Any attempt to justify or explain it as something else is misplaced," he said at a press conference at Ballymena police station.
He added that members of the minority ethnic community “felt fear” and that the policing operation in Ballymena aimed to reassure the community.
"I would strongly urge anyone who was involved in yesterday's disorder to reflect long and hard about their actions, they will have consequences," he said.
Mr Henderson said that police officers from England and Wales will be brought to Northern Ireland if needed to help the PSNI in the wake of the Ballymena disorder.
He said: "Should I need any additionality, I'm absolutely assured that my colleagues in policing in England and Wales, the National Police Operation Centre, stand fast and ready to support should we need that support."
The senior officer said police did not have specific intelligence that there would be a repeat of the violent scenes, but said a significant policing operation would be in place.
Stormont ministers have made a joint appeal for calm following the violence, across the powersharing executive including Sinn Fein, DUP, Alliance Party and UUP.
The statement said: “As ministers representing every party and department in the Northern Ireland Executive, we strongly condemn the racially motivated violence witnessed in recent days and make an urgent appeal for calm across society. The alleged serious sexual assault reported on 7 June in Ballymena was appalling and our collective thoughts are with the victim and their loved ones at this deeply traumatic time.
“It is paramount that the justice process is now allowed to take its course so that this heinous crime can be robustly investigated. Those weaponising the situation in order to sow racial tensions do not care about seeing justice and have nothing to offer their communities but division and disorder.
“While all of our citizens have the right to engage in peaceful protest, there can never be any justification for the violence that has taken place in recent days, during which residents have been terrorised and numerous PSNI officers injured.”
The statement added: “We are urging everyone in our communities to play their part in that effort and reject the divisive agenda being pursued by a minority of destructive, bad faith actors.”
Downing Street said there could be no justification for the violence in Ballymena.
The prime minister's official spokesman said: "The disorder we saw in Ballymena is very concerning.
"Obviously, the reports of sexual assault in the area are extremely distressing, but there is no justification for attacks on police officers while they continue to protect local communities,” they said. "PSNI and the justice system must be allowed to carry out their jobs and our thoughts are with the victims of the assault as well as the police officers who were injured."
Northern Ireland secretary Hilary Benn has said there is “no justification” for attacks on police officers or vandalism in Ballymena.
“The terrible scenes of civil disorder we have witnessed in Ballymena again this evening have no place in Northern Ireland,” he said in a social media post. “There is absolutely no justification for attacks on PSNI officers or for vandalism directed at people’s homes or property.”
