Minor trouble at Ardoyne parade
There has been minor trouble during a Twelfth of July parade in north Belfast.
A small number of nationalist residents clashed with police as the Orange Order parade made its way past Twaddell Avenue on Thursday morning.
Loyalist supporters also shouted at the protestors.
However the event was largely peaceful.
Sinn Fein MLA Gerry Kelly said: “The road is now cleared. It was very tense and there was a peaceful protest as planned.
“While the lodges and the bands stuck to their (Parades Commission) determination, there was a substantial number of supporters who started shouting abuse at the protesters and it got a bit hairy but we are through it, it has been a lot worse in the past.”
It comes after Orangemen said a “peaceful solution” has been reached to the dispute surrounding the return leg of their march past the Ardoyne shopfronts.
A meeting was held on Wednesday evening to discuss the situation, with the Order later confirming their solution would “guarantee” a return parade for the Ligoniel lodges affected.
A short statement on behalf of the Order and the North and West Belfast Parades Forum said that no further details will be released until Thursday, when the lodges meet in the field.
Meanwhile a senior police commander has already told UTV that the PSNI will enforce the Parades Commission’s ruling that marchers must pass the area by 4pm.
He said that the police would be on the ground in north Belfast on Thursday to “act as peace-keepers”. It has been the scene of rioting in recent years.
A nationalist residents’ group, the Greater Ardoyne Residents’ Collective (GARC), has been allowed to stage a protest at 5.30pm after the return parade by the Order, while unionist Twaddell residents have filed for their own counter-protest to be held at the same time.
On Wednesday evening, a protest was held by more than 100 unionist residents at Twaddell Avenue.
Nationalist residents gathered at the shopfronts during the demonstration, which passed off peacefully.
