Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
LAST UPDATE | 2 hrs ago
A MAN HAS been arrested in relation to a controversial loyalist bonfire in Co Tyrone which has been topped with a replica mosque.
The bonfire in Moygashel also features banners reading “secure our borders” and “end the threat of radical Islam”.
The Moygashel bonfire is one of around 300 across the North which will be burned on 10 and 11 July, ahead of the Orange Order’s annual 12 July parades.
The bonfire in Moygashel is due to be set alight on Friday night.
The PSNI has said it is “aware of the item placed on top of the bonfire in Moygashel”.
A PSNI spokesperson said a 56-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of contravention of Article 9 of the Public Order (NI) Order 1987.
This legislation relates to the use of words or behaviour or display of written material likely to stir up hatred or arouse fear.
The 56-year-old man remains in custody at this time.
Ammesty International described it as a “vile display” and a “blatant attempt to stir up anti-Muslim hatred and intimidate local families”.
Patrick Corrigan, Amnesty International’s Northern Ireland director, said it “must be met with a decisive response by the police”.
“The placing of an effigy of a mosque on top of a bonfire amounts to incitement to hatred directed at real people who live, work and raise families in Northern Ireland,” added Corrigan.
“The police must investigate this as a potential crime, identify and hold to account those responsible, and ensure this material is swiftly removed before it can be used to incite further hatred and violence.”
Elsewhere, SDLP councillor Carl Whyte described the display on the bonfire as “absolutely disgusting”.
He told the BBC Good Morning Ulster programme that the “singling out of an entire religion, an entire faith, is just shameful”.
Last year’s bonfire in Moygashel, and the one before that, were similarly controversial.
The bonfire last year was topped with an effigy of refugees in a boat.
The boat contained more than a dozen life-sized mannequins wearing life jackets, and beneath were several placards, with one saying “stop the boats” and another “veterans before refugees”.
The Moygashel bonfire has become well known in recent years for contentious displays.
In 2024, a mock PSNI vehicle was burnt on the top of the bonfire and in 2023 a boat designed to represent the post-Brexit Irish Sea economic border was torched.
The PSNI has been approached for comment.
Last month in Moygashel, the PSNI removed a banner from a children’s playground, stating it was being treated as a hate crime.
-With additional reporting from Press Association
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say