Four blast bombs target police officers in Belfast

At least four blast bombs were thrown at police in east Belfast last night.

Several petrol bombs were also hurled after disturbances broke out in the Lower Newtownards Rd area.

A Police Service of Northern Ireland spokes- woman said: “Police are currently dealing with public disorder in the Lower Newtownards Road area.

“At least four blast bombs and several petrol bombs have been thrown at police. There are no reports of any injuries at this stage. Water cannon has been deployed and one AEP [attenuated energy projectile] round has been fired by police.”

It is the fourth night of trouble in parts of Belfast.

Earlier, a pipe bomb packed with nails was thrown towards police lines in north Belfast.

The device was thrown from the nationalist Brompton Park area of Ardoyne and exploded after striking an armoured police vehicle just after 5pm. There were no reports of any injuries.

Sinn Féin MLA for North Belfast Gerry Kelly claimed a seven-year-old child was on the street when the bomb was thrown: “The first thing to say is that this attack is completely unacceptable and is not supported by the vast majority of the community in Ardoyne and I condemn it.”

PSNI Superintendent Emma Bond said: “I would appeal to anyone with influence in the community to exert it to ensure that the next few days pass off without incident.”

Terry Spence, chairman of the Police Federation, which represents rank and file officers in the North, said police were in a difficult position.

“We have been here so many times before, where the police are the meat in the sandwich,” he said. “Quite clearly this demonstrates how police officers have to be alert and very cautious looking over their shoulder while carrying out public order duties.”

An additional 1,000 police officers from around Britain were deployed and PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Will Kerr said hundreds more officers would be deployed if parade-related violence continued.