More than 50 police officers have been hurt & 10 people arrested as a result of rioting over the past 10 days, in several towns & cities across Northern Ireland. UK & Irish prime ministers have condemned the violence & Northern Ireland's government met on April 8 to call for an "immediate and complete end" to the unrest. All Northern Ireland's main parties have condemned the rioting, although they are divided over its causes. Violence involving gangs of people as young as 12 started on March 29 in an area of Londonderry that is loyalist, in favour of keeping Northern Ireland as part of the United Kingdom. Rioting has largely seen loyalist youths throwing bricks, fireworks & petrol bombs at lines of police officers & vehicles. While there are no clear indications the unrest is being orchestrated by an organised group, violence has been concentrated in areas where criminal gangs linked to loyalist paramilitaries have significant influence. In January, graffiti opposing the Irish Sea border was daubed on walls in some loyalist areas, including parts of Bangor, Belfast, Glengormley, and the home of one of Northern Ireland's main ports, Larne. These Brexit checks were temporarily suspended amid reported threats against port workers in Larne and Belfast - although the police later said there was no evidence of "credible threats".
