(Image: Julien Behal/PA Wire)
OVER 30 POLICE officers and an MP in Northern Ireland have been injured in six hours of rioting in Belfast overnight.
The riots kicked off when police stopped an Orange Order march for the traditional Twelfth of July commemorations from passing through the nationalist area of Ardoyne.
Police said that officers in North Belfast were attacked by individuals "wielding swords and missiles, including heavy masonry, golf balls, bottles and fireworks". Four officers were taken to hospital for treatment to injuries in this area, three having been knocked unconscious. Another officer sustained head and leg injuries.
Police also confirmed that a missile thrown at police lines in North Belfast struck DUP MP Nigel Dodds, who is also understood to have been knocked unconscious.
In East Belfast, a total of 12 officers were injured after being attacked and targeted with missiles and petrol bombs. A Mutial Aid officer sustained a broken leg while a PSNI officer has a suspected broken jaw. Water cannons were deployed to try to push back the rioters.
Six people were arrested in the area for offences ranging from disorderly behaviour and resisting arrest to assault. A 39-year-old male was also arrested for "doing a provocative act".
A video, released by the police cervice, shows the kind of violence officers were faced with:
(Video: Police ServiceNI/YouTube)
Today Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore condemned the violence and "disrespect for the rule of law" which he said was an affront to the decent people of the city.
"We are at one in our commitment and determination to uphold the law and support the police," he said. "Our thoughts in particular are with those who were injured upholding the peace."
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