A senior police chief has called for “all those with influence” to help bring an end to the violence in Belfast as officers came under attack during a third night of disturbances.
Police were pelted with fireworks and bricks in the Carlisle Circus area in the north of the city. But the trouble was not on the scale of rioting that left more than 60 officers injured over the two previous evenings.
Police used water cannon and baton rounds during serious violence on Sunday and Monday which was sparked by fresh tensions over parades.
Politicians have been urged to do more to calm the sectarian disturbances which loyalist paramilitaries have been accused of orchestrating.
And with a major loyalist parade planned for September 29, Police Service of Northern Ireland Assistant Chief Constable Will Kerr said: “Northern Ireland cannot afford an 11th hour solution. I urge all those with influence to urgently use it to bring a resolution to the violence and work towards a longer-term solution for the issues affecting this area.”
The senior officer expressed fears that lives could be lost if the issue is not resolved.
Stormont leaders have pledged to help tackle the parade tension that surfaced after restrictions were placed on loyalist marchers who had played offensive tunes outside a Catholic church near the scene of the riots.
On Monday night 15 officers were injured during serious disorder that saw petrol bombs, stones, bottles, fireworks and rocks thrown at police lines. Three needed hospital treatment. A van was also hijacked by rioters in Denmark Street and pushed at officers, who were forced to use water cannon and six baton rounds to disperse troublemakers.
Crowds gathered in Denmark Street again on Tuesday night before further disorder broke out. Police temporarily closed roads leading to the area and six people were arrested over the disorder which had fizzled out by midnight.
Three officers sustained minor injuries that did not require hospital treatment and water cannon were not used, the PSNI said.
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