Belfast calm after fresh sectarian clashes

Belfast was calm today after another night of sectarian clashes in the north of the city.

Petrol bombs and stones were thrown by rival loyalist and republican crowds which gathered at the flashpoint Ardoyne shops.

At the height of the trouble, an estimated 100 people were involved in the violence and police moved in to separate the factions.

A Police Service of Northern Ireland spokeswoman said there were no injuries and no arrests and the area was calm with police back in control in the early hours.

There was a separate stand-off between rival factions in Belfast where around 50 youths gathered at a peaceline. They dispersed before violence erupted.

Tensions have been high in the city since the weekend when gangs of republicans and loyalists attacked each other.

Police chiefs said children as young as six were involved in rioting which broke out on Sunday night at the junction of the Ardoyne Road and Alliance Avenue.

The day before, up to 400 people were involved in clashes which continued for several hours in east Belfast.