Nationalist rioters attack CCTV masts

CCTV camera masts, designed to curb the ongoing sectarian violence in north Belfast came under attack early this morning by mobs carrying blast and petrol bombs.

The trouble started in Brompton Park and Estoril Park just before midnight when a crowd of around 50 people began to cut down poles recently erected for the installation of CCTV cameras.

Police, who moved in to clear the nationalist mob, came under attack from petrol bombs, paint bombs and other missiles. One man was arrested during the early morning violence.

Security Minister Jane Kennedy had announced last month she was authorising the erection of CCTV cameras at flashpoint areas in north Belfast in order to contain the continuing sectarian violence.

Residents living in nearby Twaddell Avenue claim that prominent republicans supervised the attack on the camera masts.

One resident said: “This is an attack on the safety of ordinary residents at this interface. These cameras will prove beyond doubt that republicans are orchestrating street violence in this area, and that is why they are so opposed to them.”

Contractors working on the camera installations recently received death threats from republican paramilitaries. Local residents are calling for swift action from the Northern Ireland Office to ensure that the camera scheme is completed and reinforced without further delay.

(AMcE)