Petrol bombs thrown in east Belfast
Police have come under attack for the sixth consecutive night in east Belfast.
A PSNI spokesman says petrol bombs and fireworks were thrown at police lines on the Lower Newtownards Road on Tuesday night.
Motorists are being advised to avoid the area.
A number of loyalist flag protests have been held in the area.
Templemore Avenue and the Newtownards Road have been closed to traffic due to an ongoing protest.
Castlereagh Street and Beersbridge Road remain closed. Diversions are in place.
Glenmachan Street has re-opened following an earlier protest.
Last month Belfast City Council passed a motion to restrict the flying of the Union Flag at City Hall.
It has been followed by weeks of protests and rioting in which more than 60 police officers were injured.
Earlier on Tuesday, First Minister Peter Robinson said that the ongoing disorder was “very damaging” to Northern Ireland’s reputation around the world.
“We’ve worked for a very long period of time to overcome the image of Northern Ireland as a place where there is violence and instability,” the DUP leader told UTV.
“Already we have had investors, both people who have invested and people who were about to invest asking questions, and we are having to give reassurances to them,” he said.
“It’s bad for our image, it is bad for our opportunities to bring jobs to Northern Ireland, and that ultimately means that it is bad for ordinary people on the ground who will not have the opportunity to work in those jobs that could have been created.”
The first meeting of the unionist taskforce created by Mr Robinson and UUP leader Mike Nesbitt in response to the ongoing flag violence will take place at Stormont on Thursday morning.
In a statement, Mr Robinson and Mr Nesbitt said the Unionist Forum will “seek to engage with the entire unionist community and address issues of concern”.
