Republican News · Thursday 18 October 2001

Loyalist attacks on nationalists continue

Since last Tuesday, 9 October, when loyalists jumped from a car in North Belfast and beat a 16-year-old youth, numerous attacks have occurred throughout Belfast.

While most were directed against nationalists, a UDA-organised riot on the Lower Shankill on Thursday 11 October, in which a pipe bomb was thrown at the RUC, led the British Secretary of State to finally declare the UDA ceasefire over.

The Shankill trouble began when the RUC raided a house on Shankill Terrace where they found bomb making material, a pipe bomb, replica weapons and cannabis. One man, David Hinton, was charged in connection with the find.

However, Reid's move only acted as a spur to the UDA. In flashpoint areas such as Newington and Duncairn Gardens, which have borne the brunt of UDA violence in the past year, the UDA threw up to six bombs over the weekend.

In attacks on Tuesday 16 October two pipe bombs exploded close to houses at the junction of Duncairn Gardens and Halliday's Road. The 'peace line' at this junction has been the scene of continuous loyalist incursions into the nationalist Duncairn Gardens area, where both people and property have been attacked.

The most intense of the UDA inspired violence centred on the Limestone Road, close to the Newington area. Sporadic trouble erupted on Saturday afternoon, 13 October, when a gang of loyalists stoned nationalist homes and nationalists retaliated. This trouble lasted a short while and the area was quiet until 5am on Sunday morning.

According to Sinn Féin representative Cathy Stanton, a gang of loyalists from the Tiger's Bay area, wielding hammers and a hatchet, smashed in the window of a house on Limestone Road and damaged a door frame as they tried to break into the house. A 15-year-old who was in the house at the time was wounded when he was struck by the hatchet.

After four further four attacks, a pipe bomb was thrown into a house on Newington Avenue around Noon. The blast smashed a window in the home, which had already been attacked on two previous occasions in the last two weeks. The owner of the house, Breige Burns, was in the home with her 13-year-old son and grandchildren has lived there for 25 years. She now says she is going to move out.

Then, on Monday evening, 15 October, in a sustained assault, pipe bombs and shots were directed at three houses on Newington Street. Three bombs were thrown into one house; two exploded, while the third was defused by the British Army. Four shots were directed at a second house.

In a third attack, the bombers returned and threw a device into the back yard of Breige Burns' home. This bomb blew off the wooden hoarding used to cover the windows after the previous attack.

Cathy Stanton said this second attack on the Burns home was carried out while the woman was in the house collecting some clothes for her grandchildren: "The lights were on so they knew someone was in the house and bombed it again."

The attack on the youth in Alliance Avenue occurred last Tuesday, 9 October, as he walked along with his friends. A silver car which had driven past the youths came back and braked suddenly. Three men jumped out and ran at the youths shouting "get the fenian bastards".

A 16-year-old fell as the group tried to escape and as he lay on the ground he was kicked and beaten. He was treated for cuts and bruising in hospital.

A similar incident occurred on Thursday, 11 October, when a loyalist mob came out of Twaddell Avenue and grabbed a man at the Ardoyne shops. A youth who went to his aid was also savagely beaten. Sinn Féin councillor Margaret McClenaghan told An Phoblacht that local Ardoyne people came out and the loyalists retreated. "When the RUC arrived they threatened to arrest local nationalists," she said.

On Friday 12 October at about 10.30pm, loyalists from the Westland Estate attacked Catholic houses on Westland Road.

Pupils attacked after football match

Members of a soccer team from the Christian Brothers Secondary School in West Belfast were stoned by loyalists as they returned from a match in Dundonald on the outskirts of East Belfast.

The incident occurred last Wednesday, 10 October, as the pupils, who had just played a soccer match against Dundonald High School, were on their way home. As they approached a road bridge near the Ballybean estate, a group of about 20 people, including some pupils from Dundonald High and young adults, let fly at the bus with stones and rocks.

None of the pupils were injured in the attack.