LAST UPDATE | 11 Jul 2018
POLICE IN THE North believe at least six shots were fired at PSNI officers in Derry as they responded to a third night of disorder in the run-up to the 12 July celebrations.
There were no injuries reported as a result of the gunfire but Chief Inspector Neil Beck said the attack was “a blatant bid to murder police”.
The incident marked the third day of violence in the city. Twenty six petrol bombs, bottles and masonry were thrown at the PSNI during the night.
This afternoon, a joint statement from the north’s political leaders appealed for calm and condemned the violence:
“Attacks on the police have been on-going for a number of days alongside other violence including sectarian attacks on houses, petrol bombs thrown at the police, intimidation of contractors, vehicles hi-jacked and attacks on sheltered accommodation.“The shots fired last night were a clear and obvious attempt to murder police officers. There must be a strong, clear and united voice against those who would engage in such disgraceful violence.“As a society we must all stand with those who maintain law and order and who protect all sides of our community.
“We condemn any illegal activity and and urge those who are damaging their own community and intimidating their neighbours to stop. We would urge people to work with the Police to bring those involved in criminality to justice.
“We want to see a society where people can live together without the threat of intimidation or violence.
Those who engage in such tactics must be shown that they will not succeed.”
A woman was injured after she was struck on the head with a stone and two of our officers were injured after they were struck with bricks.”
A car was set on fire in Fahan Street during the early hours of this morning and the Leckey Road was closed for a period of time after pallets were placed across the road and set on fire.
Speaking about last night’s disorder and the ongoing issues in the city, Chief Inspector Alan Hutton said: “We are disappointed that some people decided to continue the public disorder in the Bogside last night, despite the clear message from the community earlier.
“This morning, following the disorder in the Bogside area of the city last night, we have two officers and a member of the public injured. I am very proud of how my colleagues stood in the face of danger, working to bring this situation under control but I am saddened and angry that again we find ourselves subject to serious violence from the communities we serve.
Let me be clear, we have made three arrests last night and with a robust criminal justice strategy in place, there will be more.
“The local community needs to see a resolution to this issue now. Collectively, we cannot afford to wait and we cannot have night after night of violence on our streets. Following three nights of disorder, we have a number of police officers who are no longer available to deliver their core policing duties, protecting the communities they serve.
“And the huge impact on our City cannot be ignored. As we strive to promote our positive image, the negative effect of these violent pictures on jobs, tourism and investment cannot be underestimated. We do not want to take a backward step. I urge all those with influence to urgently use it to bring a resolution to the violence and work towards a longer term solution for the issues affecting this area.”
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