How a 'three-day festival of hate' engulfed Ballymena

After three nights of hate-filled violence, some terrified families in Ballymena have resorted to displaying their nationalities on their front door.

- AMY-CLARE MARTIN

Signs proclaiming “locals live here” or “Filipino lives here” have been put up alongside union jack flags in a desperate bid to stop rioters from targeting their homes.

The violent disorder has been criticised as “racist thuggery” and “mob rule” by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), who told those threatened or affected by the attacks: “We are with you.”

Clashes erupted after a social media post was circulated advertising a peaceful protest at 7.30pm on Monday evening in response to an alleged serious sexual assault in the Country Antrim town on Saturday.

The Facebook post stated it was to be a “peaceful protest to show our anger at what cannot and will not be tolerated in this town”.

Two 14-year-old boys had appeared in court over the incident that morning, where they denied the charges against them through a Romanian interpreter. Within 36 hours of the protest, 32 police officers had been injured as the force struggled to keep the peace.