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Police release images of 'sinister' Belfast riot

By Channel 4 News

Updated on 13 July 2010

Aerial footage showing police officers being attacked during riots in north Belfast have been released by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) amid calls for a major investigation into the violence.

Belfast

Fifty five officers were injured during the attacks surrounding the Orange Order's 12 July parades along the Crumlin Road in the Ardoyne area of north Belfast.

A female police officer remains stable in hospital after being struck on the head with a cement block. Ambulance crews who came to her aid were also attacked.

The aerial images from a police helicopter showed riot police repeatedly being attacked by masked men wielding iron bars and wooden posts.

Armoured cars were also attacked in the trouble, which was sparked by nationalists protesting against an Orange Order parade.

PSNI chief constable Matt Baggott described the trouble as "recreational rioting with a sinister edge" and said its costs would run into millions of pounds.

"It places a great burden on my colleagues who last night exercised a superb restraint, superb professionalism and superb courage and it emphasised again just how important the Police Service of Northern Ireland is in making sure the future is one that we can all share, and be safe."

"We will be holding a major investigation now into the events of last night."

Earlier Alistair Finlay, the PSNI assistant chief constable, called on politicians to do more to prevent violence around the marches.

"There are individual politicians working very hard on this, but are we seeing the joined-up government, are we seeing in this, this morning, after a very difficult night, very damaging for Northern Ireland, these images beamed across the United Kingdom and perhaps wider, are we seeing the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister stepping out to condemn this?" he said.

"And showing that they have a plan to meet this type of issue next time it comes round, rather than waiting until it inevitably comes around next year and it's the police who will form that human barrier attempting to keep the peace and keeping relationships building?

"I haven't heard from them, I didn't hear from them before the Twelfth of July... we didn't see joined-up, strategic leadership from politicians who are entrusted and voted for by the community to deliver a cohesive society."

Sinn Fein and the DUP said their parties were working to ease tensions and had introduced measures aimed at tackling the marching issue. 

Trouble in the north Belfast "flashpoint"
For years and years, there has been a flashpoint known as Ardoyne, in north Belfast, writes Channel 4 News analyst Eamonn Mallie. 

Every year the Orangemen have to walk past at the start of the march and they return. They are strictly going through a Catholic nationalist area. The position of the Catholic nationalist community has always been that you don't march where you're not welcome.

But the Orangemen say they've always marched there and will continue, no matter what happens.

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