Emergency services in Northern Ireland responded to 24 bonfire related incidents last night as part of the loyalist 12th of July celebrations.
First Minister and DUP leader Arlene Foster criticised the actions of those who flaunted social distancing restrictions to engage in the events, many of which involved sectarian messages.
On the BBC’s Sunday Politics programme she said she wanted Northern Ireland to be a country “where we can all proudly celebrate but do so in a way that is not offensive and not sectarian.”
Despite a 30% decrease in reported incidents from last year, crowds of people were congregated at events across Ulster. In north Belfast a second consecutive night of violence around the New Lodge area saw police attacked with petrol bombs. The Catholic community was in close proximity to a large loyalist bonfire in the Protestant Tiger’s Bay neighbourhood.
‘The Twelfth’ is a long running celebration in Ulster Protestantism, marking the Battle of the Boyne in which Catholic King James II was defeated by the Protestant William of Orange. It is seen by some critics as having elements of anti-Catholic sectarianism among some participants and events. Throughout its history it has always led to disorder and controversy, particularly during the Troubles of the 70s and 80s.
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