Protestants Riot In Belfast Ireland

www.cnn.com...

Sectarian rioting broke out in eastern Belfast late Monday, with leaders from both Catholic and Protestant communities reporting attacks on homes overnight.

Police reported Molotov cocktails were being thrown as a large crowd gathered on the streets that separate Catholic and Protestant neighborhoods in the area, a longstanding Northern Ireland flash point. Ambulance services reported two people injured early Tuesday, and reporters attempting to cover the disturbances were threatened.

This is the first attack led by Protestants (Loyalist) in a long time. Apparently it's in response to a supposed attack on Loyalist homes over the past week (I can't find any news stories about it?) men in cammo and masks threw fire bombs at Catholics while damaging property.

The interesting thing to me is the media blackout. This is a major setback for Irish peace and there is not much being said.

For instance.. the BBC is reporting absolutely nothing: www.bbc.co.uk...

The Irishtimes www.irishtimes.com... posted a short story but it's main story is about an elephant casting a vote.

Witnesses described the men and said they walked down Castlereagh Street, on the loyalist side of the area, into Short Strand.

After homes were attacked with paint, fireworks and bricks, a riot broke out which spilled into the Bryson Street area.

One woman told The Irish News that the violence was “definitely orchestrated”.

www.thejournal.ie...

Sectarian tensions typically flare in the build-up to July 12, a divisive Northern Ireland holiday when tens of thousands of Protestants from the Orange Order brotherhood march across the British territory. One of the first contentious parades of the Orange marching season turned violent Friday when police blocked Orangemen from parading through part of Ardoyne, a militant Catholic district that often seeks to lash out at passing Protestant parades. Four police officers reported minor injuries.

www.theglobeandmail.com...

This is not a set back.

This goes on every year at this time.

Its marching season and sumer holidays.

Summertime. Heavy weather. Older kids off school with nothing to do. They just go back to the good old days and start fighting with each other.

Heavy weather/kids off school/ drinking/marching season.

99.99% of people in all of Ireland have moved on with their lives. You get this odd little break out of local fighting during summer holidays. Its of no importance.

Originally posted by Rockpuck

imes.com/newspaper/breaking/2011/0621/breaking2.html posted a short story but it's main story is about an elephant casting a vote.

the irish times will often publish a novel or odd striking picture on their front page.

this is a picture.

its is not a lead story.

the current lead story is "EU acts to ease Irish return to private debt markets"

www.irishtimes.com...

maybe you only look at the pictures when you read a newspaper?

As another poster has said there are riots every year around marching season and there is occasional sectarian trouble in Northern Ireland. Though it's a shame that this sort of thing still happens in Northern Ireland these riots aren't majorly significant.

reply to post by Rockpuck


It's a few people having a fight.

It's not a major setback.

Of course there are still remnants of the old animosities and bigotry that has blighted Ireland for centuries.

All of Irelands woes can not and will not be cured overnight, but the important thing is that the vast majority of people in both Ulster and The Republic are still working towards a lasting and meaningful peace.

Most of the riots now take place during "the marching season", however, they aren't normally this bad untill the traditional 2/3 day riot for the 12th July when the orange order marched across the Ardoyne shops.

But the media don't report on sectarian attacks as often even though they are still almost a daily occurence here. The most worrying aspect of this is that members of the UVF took part in last nights trouble, according to Alex Maskey who is a Sinn Fein member of assembly.

In recent months there has been a lot of bombscares reported to the police and quite a few live bombs have been discovered at them, but not all. The police recently found a collection of hoax bombs at City Cemetary of all places.

With the recent activity of the "Dissident" Republicans don't be suprised if there are "tit for tat" attacks, but I personally hope there won't be as this could bring us back into a downwards spiral of constant trouble again.

It has now been confirmed by the PSNI that the UVF organised these riots and shot live rounds at the police

Hopefully nothing comes of this