Police have linked a riot in south Belfast to a security swoop which led to the arrest of two men in the area.
Trouble flared at Glenmackin Street in the loyalist Village area of the city last night as gangs of youths blocked the road and stoned vehicles.
A police spokeswoman said the trouble may have been directly linked to searches carried out under terrorist legislation.
Two men who were arrested at the time have since been released, one without charge and the other pending a report to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
A number of items were removed from the area for further examination. The chair of Belfast District Policing Partnership last night accused police officers of heavy-handed tactics.
Police closed off Glenmackin Street after 40 strong crowd of youths began blocking the road and stoning vehicles.
But locals claimed the riot was sparked by a police swoop in the area.
Democratic Unionist councillor Ruth Paterson, who chairs Belfast's DPP, said the people of the Village area were frustrated by the police operation.
"We have managed to calm things down by getting the police to pullback," she said.
"It appears the police went into the area in quite a heavy-handed way and that sparked off disturbances.
"I'm certainly trying to get people to calm down and judge the situation for what it is."
Motorists were urged to steer clear of the Village and the Broadway area following the disturbances. Locals said at least eight Land Rovers swooped on the area at around tea-time.