June 11, 2026, 12:59 p.mJune 11, 2026, 12:59 p.m
Twelve police officers were injured in renewed riots in the Northern Irish capital Belfast on Wednesday evening. 16 people were arrested, according to Hilary Benn, the minister responsible for Northern Ireland.
Twelve police officers were injured in the riots in Belfast.Image: keystone
Dozens of masked rioters set up barricades and set vehicles on fire. The police were pelted with stones and Molotov cocktails. Officers used water cannons to keep the rioters at bay. Unlike the night before, the riots were largely limited to the Newtownabbey district in northwest Belfast.
Targeting people with a migrant background
On Wednesday night, vehicles and apartments were set on fire in various parts of the city. The rioters targeted people with a migrant background, some of whom had to be rescued from their homes under police protection. Northern Ireland Minister Benn condemned the incidents as “acts of racist violence”.
The rioters took advantage of a brutal knife attack that left one seriously injured on Monday evening, for which a refugee from Sudan was charged with attempted murder. Riots had already been feared, but appeals for restraint from politicians and the police went unheeded. (dab/sda/dpa)