Petrol bombs thrown at police

Police came under petrol bomb attack last night in a further bout of violence at an east Belfast interface.

Police came under petrol bomb attack last night in a further bout of violence at an east Belfast interface.

The latest disturbances on the Albertbridge Road and Mountpottinger areas were described as minor, though one officer was injured when he was hit in the face by a missile.

The police said the area was calm by 2.30am, but the violence followed serious clashes on Monday night at the same location when around 200 nationalists and loyalists were on the streets.

Three people were arrested during last night’s riot and are currently helping police with their enquiries.

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Area Commander CI John McKeag condemned the second night of disturbances in which a number of petrol bombs and other missiles were hurled at officers.

“Although the disturbances were on a much less scale that the night before, this behaviour is still totally unacceptable,” he said.

“Local residents deserve to live in peace and I can assure the community that we are continuing to work to bring those responsible before the courts at the earliest opportunity.

“A team of dedicated officers has been set up to achieve this and I am confident that further arrests will be made over the next few days.”

He added: “I would also urge local community and elected representatives to assist police in their efforts to dissuade this unacceptable behaviour”.

PA