Celtic FC: Call for club to take action over IRA Brendan McFarlane banner
A DUP MP has called on Celtic FC to take action against fans who held up a banner commemorating a former IRA man at a match this week.The banner was unfurled at Celtic Park ahead of Tuesday's Scottish Premiership match against Aberdeen.It paid tribute to Brendan 'Bik' McFarlane, who died at the weekend, describing him as a "hero".McFarlane was jailed in 1976 for his part in a gun and bomb attack on Bayardo Bar in Belfast in which five people were killed.
Gregory Campbell tabled an early day motion at Westminster raising concern about the banner and calling on Celtic to take action against those responsible.Campbell said if the club failed to act it will lead to the "belief in wider society" that it is content to be associated with the tribute.On Friday, Sinn Féin's Gerry Kelly expressed condolences following the "sad passing of my friend and comrade", adding he was a "huge figure within republicanism".
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Telegraph
4 hours ago
- Telegraph
Blame game breaks out over Northern Ireland riots
A Stormont minister is facing calls to resign as a blame game breaks out over the Northern Ireland riots. Communities Minister Gordon Lyons is accused of making Larne Leisure Centre a target for anti-migrant rioters with a social media post sent hours before it was set on fire. Northern Ireland's First Minister Michelle O'Neill has now told him to 'consider his position', claiming he had 'failed to show correct leadership'. Mr Lyons, of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), said he would 'strongly hit back at any notion' that he had publicly revealed the facility was being used to house immigrant families who had been affected by violence in nearby Ballymena. The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said ethnic minorities have been targeted in the violence, which they have described as 'racist thuggery'. Masked youths attacked the leisure centre on Wednesday night and set it on fire. Before the blaze, Mr Lyons posted on social media that the building had been used to temporarily accommodate several people following riotous behaviour in Ballymena, which is 30 minutes away. His post said: 'As a local MLA for the area, neither I nor my DUP council colleagues were made aware or consulted on this decision until late this afternoon.' He added: 'It has now been confirmed to us by the PSNI and council that all these individuals are in the care of the Housing Executive and have been moved out of Larne. 'Protesting is, of course, a legitimate right, but violence is not and I would encourage everyone to remain peaceful.' Ms O'Neill said Mr Lyons had 'failed to show correct leadership and I think that his commentary falls very short and very much strays into the territory of inflaming the situation, so I think that he should consider his position.' 'Stop the rumours' Asked by the BBC Good Morning Ulster programme if he should still be in his job, Mr Lyons replied: 'Absolutely.' He added: 'My message was posted because rumours had been circulating that the leisure centre was to be turned into a permanent centre. 'A protest had already been planned at 7pm last evening. 'The PSNI was then in contact with one of our local councillors and they were keen that we highlight the fact that the leisure centre was no longer being used for this purpose, they wanted to stop the rumours that people were being permanently housed there and all of that was the catalyst for the protest. 'As a result of that, I posted a clarification that the centre had been used but that was temporary and was no longer being used for that purpose.' Mr Lyons said he believed it was right that public representatives should be consulted when emergency protocols are put in place. He said: 'I believe that information is key here so that rumours don't circulate around.' Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn said: 'If people have been forced out of their homes, they need to be taken to a place of safety and they need to be looked after because they will be traumatised and they will be frightened. 'I don't think it helps matters at all to publicise where they have been taken.' 'Reckless' Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly, who is a DUP party colleague of Mr Lyons, said: 'I think that what the people of Northern Ireland need and want right now is to see that the Executive is united, and united on a very clear message. 'That is incredibly important, we have just seen three nights of violent disorder.' Matthew O'Toole, leader of the opposition in the Northern Ireland Assembly, said he had referred Mr Lyons' social media post to the Assembly standards commissioner. Alliance Party MLA Danny Donnelly said: 'If I was the minister I would be considering my position. 'Highlighting the location of where immigrant families who had been burnt out were taken to a place of safety on social media was reckless and dangerous, and it certainly was a factor in that protest.' Third night of disorder Sinn Fein MLA Colm Gildernew described Mr Lyons' post as 'reckless and inflammatory', adding: 'Leadership should show responsibility - not feed into the fear of the vulnerable.' Mid and East Antrim Borough Council said the leisure centre had been designated as an emergency rest centre for those in urgent need following the disturbances in Ballymena, but the families had been safely relocated elsewhere. The fire in Larne coincided with a third night of public disorder in Ballymena. The violence began around Clonavon Terrace on Monday night following an earlier peaceful protest which was organised in support of the family of a girl who was the victim of an alleged sexual assault in the area. Two teenage boys, who spoke to a court through a Romanian interpreter, have been charged.
The Independent
4 hours ago
- The Independent
History is repeating itself in my hometown and it's terrifying to watch
Once, when I was a teenager, I was in a Spar in Ballymena when a man walked in and announced he would burn the shop to the ground if it didn't close immediately. My sister and I did not hesitate. Like everyone else, we believed him – and fled. We had been intending to dash in to the store for just a few minutes to stock up on essentials, amid fears of a long few days ahead of us as rioting broke out across Northern Ireland in the 1990s over Drumcree. So it's terrifying to watch violence unfold in my hometown again, as we have over recent nights. Around a 30-minute drive from Belfast, although it occasionally felt like further, Ballymena is often dubbed the buckle of the 'bible belt' of Northern Ireland, surprising visitors with the number of churches that line its streets. A DUP heartland, its MP was for many decades the firebrand preacher the Rev Ian Paisley, who used to secure huge parliamentary majorities, often winning one in every two votes cast. Its status as a prosperous market town in the middle of Northern Ireland, its name literally means 'middle town', helped during the long years of the Troubles. It is the home of Northern Ireland's first Sainsbury's, opened not long before the Good Friday Agreement, giving me a weekend bakery job – which occassionally included putting the jam in jam doughnuts – one of hundreds of jobs it brought to the town, as well as a company slogan "A fresh approach" that we hoped matched the times. That prosperity is one of the reasons that the town attracted immigrants in the years after the peace process proved a lasting success – migrants who are now the subject of horrific violence. In one video shared online, a woman tells the rioters: 'Be careful, lads', followed by a man telling her there were people living in one of the houses being attacked. She replied: 'Aye, but are they local? If they're local, they need out. If they're not local, let them f****** stay there.' Like everywhere in Northern Ireland, Ballymena has suffered its share of atrocities in the past. In 2006 a 15-year-old Catholic boy was beaten to death in an attack that started outside the local cinema, not all that far from where the latest riots erupted this week. The Harryville part of the town, where hundreds of people gathered this week, was the scene of loyalist protests for years against the presence of a Catholic church in a strongly Protestant area in the late 1990s. In December 1996, a 300-strong contingent of police in riot gear was needed to ensure local people were able to attend Mass, as an article for The Independent recorded at the time. And, of course, violence erupted over Drumcree, a long-running conflict about a Protestant Orange Order march in Portadown. After the incident in the Spar, my family stayed home for days, watching events unfold on the news, part of an unofficial night-time curfew that saw thousands of people lock themselves down decades before any of us had ever heard of Covid. On a separate summer I spent a mini-break in Brussels – won, bizarrely, as part of my school's quiz team – holed up in a hotel room with three fellow pupils, watching helplessly on CNN as riots erupted at home. When we landed back in Belfast International airport late at night, the violence had become so widespread we faced a difficult and potentially treacherous journey getting home. At one point we were stopped by police just as our car came face to face with an overturned and burnt out bus. That was in 1998, when the riots did not stop until the appalling murders of three young brothers in a loyalist arson attack in Ballymoney, about 20 miles from Ballymena. Hopefully it will not take a tragedy like that for the violence to end this time. More about Ballymena Northern Ireland Ian Paisley Belfast
Metro
4 hours ago
- Metro
The Ballymena riots are nothing to do with protecting women
Less than a year on from the far right riots that gripped England last summer, another part of the UK finds itself engulfed in a rampage of violence sparked by anti-immigrant sentiment. Several Northern Irish towns and cities have seen days of racially-motivated destruction, disorder and crime, with homes set alight, petrol bombs thrown and police officers attacked. The epicentre of the chaos is Ballymena, Country Antrim, where rioting followed initially peaceful protests on Monday evening in support of a teenage girl who was allegedly sexually assaulted in the area. Two teenagers appeared in court on Monday charged with attempted rape. Though their ethnicity hasn't been officially announced by the police, they spoke through a Romanian translator in court. And much like the riots that originated in Stockport last summer when Axel Rudakubana killed three children, it is their perceived identity that is the focus of the disorder. Like that unrest, the violence has been targeted, and terrifying, not least for someone like me, a visibly Muslim woman living in the UK. Attacks have been aimed at businesses and households thought to belong to 'foreign' people, anti-immigration slogans have been chanted in the street, and rioters have even live-streamed burning someone's house. The situation is so bad that families in Northern Ireland have resorted to putting up signs clarifying their identity to avoid being considered 'foreign'. It goes without saying that we should all be outraged by the alleged attempted rape of a teenage girl, no matter who is accused of perpetrating the act. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video But like last year, I'm forced to ask – is this really about the alleged victim at all? Why is it that these masked mobs only seem to care about protecting women and girls from violence and sexual assault when it's someone who isn't White British accused of the crime? There was no sign of these rioters when, for example, one of Northern Ireland's most prominent politicians, former DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, was charged with 18 sexual offences including one of rape, all of which he denies. Defenders of these racist riots might argue that immigration is the root of this problem but are we really going to pretend that migrant men are uniquely responsible for the epidemic of violence against women in a way that white British people aren't? The last time I checked, our national institutions – from parliament to the police force – were riddled with instances of misogyny. Besides, if immigration was to blame then how do you explain sexual abuses of power conducted by wealthy white men in suits? Are we going to ban suits because some men who wear them abuse women? No, of course not. Because those propositions are ridiculous. Just as ridiculous as blaming racist riots on the very immigrant communities who are being targeted. Ultimately, those rioting are hiding behind the guise of protecting women to instead propagate extremism. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Those in Ballymena aren't venting their frustrations at specific immigration policy, or protesting in support of women and girls, they are enacting violence and creating disorder in the name of the kind of culture that excludes people like me. If this was actually about systemic misogyny, then we'd see mass unrest every time a famous figure, business or institution is found to have been mistreating women, something that happens with depressing regularity. Instead, when horrific things befall women and girls, our suffering is hijacked by those seeking to sow discord and ignite community tensions. Just like with the horrific murder of three little girls in Stockport last year, the unconscionable act simply became a way for people to fuel a violent anti-immigration agenda. Meanwhile the plight of the victims and their families was overshadowed. Senseless violence and mass disorder doesn't protect women. It renders entire communities unsafe and ironically it is women and children who bear the brunt of this. There have been stories of migrant mothers fleeing Northern Ireland with their children in recent days because they are so frightened of being visibly foreign amidst such aggression and hostility. Parts of Britain descending into racist chaos every time a non-white person commits or is accused of a crime destroys the fabric of what sort of country Britain claims to be: One of tolerance and inclusion. These far-right rioters positioning themselves as the great defenders of British women and girls actually do the opposite. It moves the focus away from dealing with systemic, embedded patriarchy and misogyny in our society and instead shifts resources – from media attention to police time and money – onto tackling the subsequent disorder, rather than the root cause. Plus, what sort of women and girls are they defending? Certainly not women like me, who are visibly other, and are actively rendered unsafe by this sort of violence. Everyone I know who is a visible outsider – whether through skin colour or religious dress – still has the memory of last summer's racist riots etched in their mind. More Trending It has permanently shifted the ground upon which we have built our lives in the country we thought we belonged in. The idea of the same thing once again being reignited on UK soil reminds me that people like me are never safe. All it takes is one alleged crime to be committed by someone with a foreign name or brown skin and we are all once again rendered unsafe, forced to hide away in our homes or prove our right to exist in the place we call home. And that isn't protecting anyone. Do you have a story you'd like to share? Get in touch by emailing Share your views in the comments below. MORE: Brat summer is back: From tennis to the Euros to the Rugby World Cup, just watch as sporting queens go centre stage MORE: Doctor Who fans are convinced the show is dying – but they're wrong MORE: Sabrina Carpenter knew you'd hate her kinky album cover – that's the point
