Violent Unrest Grips Northern Ireland Amid Post-Brexit Tensions
Published Date: 4/8/2021
Source: Bloomberg Quicktake: Now
A hijacked bus was set on fire and petrol bombs were hurled at police in Belfast in at least the fourth night of serious violence in a week in Northern Ireland, where Britain's exit from the European Union has unsettled an uneasy political balance. Youths were also seen lobbing bricks, fireworks and petrol bombs in both directions over a concrete “peace wall” that separates Protestant, British loyalist and Catholic, Irish nationalist neighborhoods on Wednesday night. The Police Service of Northern Ireland said several hundred people had gathered on both sides of a gate in the wall, where “crowds ... were committing serious criminal offences, both attacking police and attacking each other”. They said a total of 55 police officers had been injured over several nights of disorder. The recent violence, largely in loyalist, Protestant areas, flared amid rising tensions over post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland and worsening relations between the parties in the Protestant-Catholic power-sharing Belfast government. Britain's split from the EU last year has disturbed the political balance in Northern Ireland, where some people identify as British and want to stay part of the UK, while others see themselves as Irish and seek unity with the neighboring Republic of Ireland, which is an EU member. Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2TwO8Gm Bloomberg Quicktake brings you live global news and original shows spanning business, technology, politics and culture. Make sense of the stories changing your business and your world. To watch complete coverage on Bloomberg Quicktake 24/7, visit http://www.bloomberg.com/qt/live, or watch on Apple TV, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, Fire TV and Android TV on the Bloomberg app. Have a story to tell? Fill out this survey for a chance to have it featured on Bloomberg Quicktake: https://cor.us/surveys/27AF30 Connect with us on… YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Bloomberg Breaking News on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BloombergQuickTakeNews Twitter: https://twitter.com/quicktake Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/quicktake Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quicktake