Three men were being questioned today after a man was injured and two RUC officers attacked during rioting in Portadown, Co Armagh last night.
Trouble flared among more than 40 people from rival factions at Woodhouse Street. Portadown has seen some of the North’s worst rioting, particularly during protests at nearby Drumcree during the July marching season.
The disturbances at the area which links the nationalist Obins Street with the town centre resulted in one man being admitted to hospital for head injuries.
Two RUC officers - a man and a woman - who were attending to him were assaulted by one of the crowd. Their injuries were not thought to be serious.
After breaking up the riot police mounted a follow-up operation which resulted in one man being arrested for riotous behaviour and another two for disorderly behaviour.
Mr Mervyn Carrick, a Northern Ireland Assembly member for the area, condemned the clashes which he described as "the fruit of paramilitarism lurking in the background".
He also warned they could become more intense in the run-up to the annual Drumcree standoff when protests over the Orange Order's attempt to march along the Garvaghy Road have previously erupted into violence.
"No doubt there's an element of sectarianism involved, but also recreational violence with young people out to engage each other for a bit of craic," the DUP man added.
"It's all working up towards the July period, with young people congregating on these late nights before going off to seek out the other side."
PA