The 2011 Northern Ireland riots were a series of riots between 20 June 2011 and 16 July 2011, starting originally in

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

, before spreading to other parts of

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

. They were initiated by the

Ulster Volunteer Force The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) is an Ulster loyalism, Ulster loyalist paramilitary group based in Northern Ireland. Formed in 1965, it first emerged in 1966. Its first leader was Gusty Spence, a former Royal Ulster Rifles soldier from North ...

June riots

The sectarian violence began around 21:00 BST on the night of Monday 20 June, when a large number of

loyalists Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...

made their way from the unionist Mount and Castlereagh Street areas to the

nationalist Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...

Short Strand The Short Strand () is a working class, inner city area of Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is a mainly Catholic and Irish nationalist enclave surrounded by the mainly Protestant and unionist East Belfast. Short Strand is located on the east ban ...

enclave.BBC
– Belfast violence flares again as police attacked This provoked a response from the nationalists. The

Police Service of Northern Ireland The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI; ; Ulster-Scots: '), is the police service responsible for law enforcement and the prevention of crime within Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) after it ...

(PSNI)

Assistant Chief Constable Assistant chief constable (ACC) is the third highest rank in all British territorial police forces (except the Metropolitan Police and City of London Police, in which the equivalent rank is commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as C ...

Alistair Finlay said that around 500–600 people were involved in the rioting.RTE
– Call for urgent talks in Belfast communities According to the PSNI, the riots are said to have been initially instigated by the

(UVF).UTV
-UVF 'organised' east Belfast riot The clashes saw various dangerous objects such as petrol bombs, bricks, bottles, fireworks and smoke bombs thrown by both sides in what police described as "high-level, life-threatening, organised, serious and sustained" attack by people "hell-bent on disorder". At one point six shots were fired from the nationalist Short Strand area followed by about five shots from the loyalist Pitt Park. Two shots hit a police

Land Rover Land Rover is a brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by British multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR builds Land Rovers in Brazil ...

in what the PSNI claimed was attempted murder of their officers. One officer suffered eye injuries when a laser pen was being used to blind officers. The riots in Short Strand were described by politicians as the worst violence in the area in a decade. On the Tuesday night, during further clashes between unionists and nationalists, about 700 people were involved. A photographer was shot in the leg by a gunman firing from the nationalist area, which police blamed on dissident republicans.BBC
– Belfast flashpoint largely quiet after day of talksBBC
– Police say dissidents behind photographer shooting By Wednesday 22 June, discussions were held between community representatives, politicians, and loyalist and nationalist figures. The result was for both sides to police their communities to avoid further violence. Later that night the area was largely peaceful despite unionist and nationalist groups – held back by community marshals – being involved for several hours in a stand-off at the Mountpottinger Road end of the Short Strand until around 01:30 on Thursday morning. Nationalist marshals intervened to stop nationalist youths attacking police Land Rovers. A 20-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of possessing an offensive weapon and assaulting police, which was followed on the Wednesday by the arrest of a 22-year-old man from West Belfast about the rioting.

July riots

A riot broke out on 1 July 2011 in Castlereagh Street and Albertbridge Road, where the police used water cannons again to stop rioting continuing into the night. On 9 July, loyalist rioters attacked the PSNI in

Ballyclare Ballyclare () is a small town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 10,850 according to the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census, and is located within the Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council area. It is part of, and ...

after the PSNI removed Union and paramilitary flags from outside a Catholic church. Expected riots broke out on 11 July and nationalist rioters attacked the PSNI in the Oldpark and Broadway areas of Belfast. The Royal Victoria Hospital's new £9 million extensions was damaged. It is believed shots were fired. More expected rioting broke out the following day in nationalist areas of north and south Belfast following the annual

Orange Order The Loyal Orange Institution, commonly known as the Orange Order, is an international Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland and primarily associated with Ulster Protestants. It also has lodges in England, Grand Orange Lodge of ...

Twelfth of July The Twelfth (also called Orangemens' Day) is a primarily Ulster Protestant celebration held on 12 July. It began in the late 18th century in Ulster. It celebrates the Glorious Revolution (1688) and victory of Protestant King William of Ora ...

parades. Trouble also broke out in

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

, where police claimed people as young as ten were involved. The PSNI were criticised for their handling of the riots. On 15 July, police in

Portadown Portadown ( ) is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town is based on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population ...

came under attack with a riot involving around 100 people. Immigrants were forced to flee

when their home came under attack by loyalists in a Catholic area. The next day, in Corcraine, Portadown, there was further unrest and rioting.Portadown disorder
psni.police.uk; accessed 23 October 2015.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Northern Ireland riots, 2011

Riots A riot or mob violence is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The p ...

2011 riots Ethnic riots 21st century in Belfast Protests in Northern Ireland

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

June 2011 in the United Kingdom July 2011 in the United Kingdom 2010s political riots Political riots in the United Kingdom

June riots

July riots

See also

References

External links