Irish foreign affairs minister appeals for calm in north Belfast

Following a meeting with nationalist residents about recent sectarian tensions in north Belfast, Irish foreign affairs minister Brian Cowen has called on those concerned to exercise restraint in the face of accelerating tensions.

The delegation, which met with Brian Cowen on Wednesday 25 July, included victims of recent violence which saw a number of people being injured during rioting.

Parents of children in Ardoyne, who were prevented from going to the Holy Cross Girls Primary School at the end of June, when loyalists blocked their main route, also attended the meeting.

The school protests marked the start of a number of violent clashes between Catholic and Protestant residents in the area.

Sinn Fein councillor Margaret McClenaghan said they wanted to make the Irish Government aware of the problems facing nationalists in the area.

"This is to ensure that Brian Cowen and everyone else in his office is aware exactly of what is going on up here," she said.

In a statement issued after the meeting, Mr Cowen said he had asked Irish officials based in Belfast to continue to monitor developments in the north of the city.

He condemned the violence and called on all concerned to "exercise restraint", and to use whatever influence they can to lessen tension.

A spokesman for Protestant residents in the Glenbryn area of the Ardoyne, Mark Coulter, said the problems should be sorted out by the local communities.

"I think the priority really would have been for people to resolve this at community level within this community here," he said.

Despite calls for calm, Wednesday was marked by a series of attacks on the lives of residents in north Belfast.

A number of houses and shops were damaged during street fighting between rival groups in north Belfast on Wednesday afternoon.

Around midnight on Wednesday five people, including three children, escaped injury from a pipe bomb attack on their home on the Oldpark Road in north Belfast.

Meanwhile, the RUC are investigating reports that gunfire was heard during trouble between nationalists and loyalists in north Belfast on Wednesday night.

Bricks, bottles and metal bolts were thrown, and an explosive device caused damage to a house on the Catholic side of the peace line at the mainly loyalist Tiger's Bay. (AMcE)