Belfast riots: seven more police officers injured | UK news | guardian.co.uk

Riot police deploy a water cannon in north Belfast, Northern Ireland, during violence on Saturday night. Photograph: Peter Morrison/AP

A further seven police officers have been injured in the rioting and disorder linked to a banned Orange Order parade in Belfast, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has confirmed.

Saturday night's casualties bring the number of police officers hurt in the disturbances since Friday to 39. One officer was struck on the head with a piece of masonry, according to the PSNI.

A Belfast-based press photographer was also hit with a brick in the face during the riot on Saturday night which was concentrated around Twaddell Avenue and Woodvale Avenue in the Greater Shankill area.

Nearly 1,000 police officers from English, Welsh and Scottish constabularies are in Northern Ireland providing back-up for the PSNI.

Meanwhile the Democratic Unionist MP for North Belfast, Nigel Dodds, is resting at home according to his wife, Diane, a DUP MEP. He was knocked unconscious on 12 July after being hit on the head with a missile thrown from loyalist lines at Woodvale Avenue towards the police.

A PSNI spokesperson said: "Officers were attacked by petrol bombs, fireworks, masonry, laser pens, and by a whole range of weapons and missiles."

None of those who were injured required hospital treatment and all stayed on duty, the spokesperson added.

Police also had to fire 10 baton rounds against a small group of loyalists attacking their lines as well deploying water cannon.

The violence erupted at about 8pm and lasted until 1.30am on Sunday when calm was restored to the area. The trouble was on a far lower scale than the disturbances that broke out following the ban on the return feeder parade from central Belfast to the Upper Crumlin Road via the nationalist Ardoyne district.

There were also brief exchanges between nationalist and loyalist youths in the North Queen Street area of the city where a number of petrol bombs were thrown.

The PSNI said there had been more than 30 arrests since Friday. The latest arrests include those of a boy and girl aged 17 suspected of riotous behaviour, and a 40-year-old man on suspicion of breach of peace, all in the Castlereagh Street area of east Belfast.

A 29-year-old man was also detained in north Belfast on suspicion of riotous assembly and attempted criminal damage following disorder in the Woodvale area.

Police said they hoped to make further arrests in the coming days. On Saturday the PSNI released video footage shot from a police helicopter of the frontline violence at Woodvale Avenue on Saturday. Dozens of loyalists attacking police lines including a member of a marching band are clearly seen brandishing a sword at police while men wearing Orange sashes also strike out at police Land Rovers. Many of their faces are identifiable and police will be using the film to mount arrests and prosecutions over the coming days and weeks.

The Northern Ireland secretary, Theresa Villiers, described the events of the past 48 hours as depressing.

She said: "The violence last night and the night before was shameful and it is vital that calls for calm are heeded by those responsible for this violence.

"They say they are trying to defend their culture but they are not defending anything by throwing petrol bombs at police officers."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk-news/2013/jul/14/belfast-riots-police-officers-injured