A senior officer has stated that there will be “a large policing presence across Northern Ireland” throughout the weekend, reports Breaking News.
Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson said the PSNI has established a “scaled-up” policing operation in preparation for any additional unrest.
He said the deployment, which includes officers from Scotland, is intended “to reassure our communities and protect our streets”, reports Breaking News.
This follows injuries to 63 police officers during what has been referred to as a “week of shame” in Northern Ireland.
The unrest began in Ballymena on Monday following an alleged sexual assault of a girl in the Co Antrim town over the weekend and continued in the days that followed, reports Breaking News.
Several homes were targeted, and the Northern Ireland Housing Executive reported that around 50 households received help during the week, with emergency accommodation provided to 14 families.
At a British Irish Council meeting in Newcastle, Co Down, on Friday, political leaders appealed for calm, reports Breaking News.
Northern Ireland’s First Minister Michelle O’Neill said there was unanimous condemnation of the unrest and a shared desire to see it end.
“What we have seen over the last four days has been devastation, has been horrific for those people targeted – this is women and children, these are families, at the brunt of racist, violent attacks, and it is wrong on every level,” she said, reports Breaking News.
“The whole of the Executive is united on that front,” reports Breaking News.
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Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly described it as a “difficult time for Northern Ireland”, citing “disgraceful scenes of violent disorder”, and expressed sympathy for affected residents.
Officers from Scotland will support the Police Service of Northern Ireland following a formal request for mutual aid, reports Breaking News.
Scottish First Minister John Swinney said the arrangement shows how vital co-operation between police services is.
While unrest in Ballymena was prominent on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday nights, it appeared to ease by Thursday. However, disorder broke out in Portadown.
Other towns also experienced incidents, such as the fire that destroyed Larne Leisure Centre on Wednesday and an arson attack in Coleraine early Friday, in which a man, a woman, and four young children escaped unharmed, reports Breaking News.
Police are treating the Coleraine incident as arson with a suspected racial hate motive.
In Portadown, 22 police officers were injured in overnight violence on Thursday after being pelted with bricks, fireworks, and beer kegs.
A woman in her 50s and a man in his 30s were arrested for suspected riotous behaviour and related offences in connection with the Portadown disturbances, reports Breaking News.
Elsewhere across Northern Ireland on Thursday night, minor unrest followed mostly peaceful protests, including in east Belfast’s Templemore Avenue area, where two homes on Avoniel Road had windows smashed in what police believe to be a racially motivated attack.
There was also a small fire reported at the Manse Road roundabout in Newtownabbey, and police are investigating anti-immigration hate graffiti discovered in Newtownards, reports Breaking News.
In Coleraine’s Mount Street area, another house fire prompted the evacuation of a family with three young children. Police are treating it as a deliberate act and a racially motivated hate crime.
The Police Federation, which represents frontline officers, said that since the outbreak of violence in Ballymena on Monday, 63 officers have sustained injuries, reports Breaking News.
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