Northern Ireland rioting leaves 24 police injured - Herald Sun

Twenty-four Northern Ireland police have been injured in riots as the protestant marching season comes to a head. Source: AAP(router,verizon wireless,wireless network,wireless internet,i phone,i phone verizon,my verizon wireless,wireless adapter,att wireless)

POLICE officers in west Belfast came under attack early yesterday from crowds of rioters who threw petrol bombs, stones and bricks, as the Protestant marching season comes to a head.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said a bus was also hijacked and driven at a police cordon, but crashed nearby.(router,verizon wireless,wireless network,wireless internet,i phone,i phone verizon,my verizon wireless,wireless adapter,att wireless)

A total of 24 police officers were injured during the violence, 22 in Belfast and two in Portadown, according to Belfast Citybeat radio station. Four officers were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, the PSNI said.
Authorities fired plastic bullets and used water cannon in efforts to disperse crowds of between 100 and 200 people who began throwing stones and missiles at police lines in the nationalist areas of Broadway and Old Park.
Petrol bombs were thrown at officers in North Queen Street and the bus was hijacked on the traditional flashpoint of Falls Road before being driven at police.
Other vehicles were hijacked or set on fire.
There were reports of gunshots in the Broadway area, but no injuries, police said.
On Monday PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Alistair Finlay appealed to those with influence to "stay calm" over the next 48 hours, as the marching season - an annual time of heightened tension between Protestant and Catholic communities - reaches its climax, the Belfast Telegraph reported.
Trouble flared late Monday when Protestants began lighting bonfires, the signal for the start of a day of celebrations during which tens of thousands of "Orange Order" men are expected to march.
The annual Twelfth of July celebrations mark the Battle of the Boyne in 1690 when King William III, a Protestant, defeated the Catholic King James II, unseated by William two years earlier.
It is feared sectarian tensions could continue to boil over in areas of Belfast and Craigavon, County Armagh, and politicians and clergy on all sides have appealed for a day free of violence.
Every available police officer will be on duty at 19 separate demonstrations, with the largest expected to be in Belfast.
The Orange Order leadership said the parades showcase its history and heritage and attracts tourists.
Grand master Edward Stevenson said, "There is no other single event that can produce crowds like the Twelfth. It is such a special day of religion, culture, music and pageantry."
View the original article here