THREE men have been arrested in Belfast following a further night of disorder in the city.
Officers responded to reports of a hijacking, damage to a business and smashed windows in the Woodvale area in North Belfast, which are being treated as racially-motivated hate crimes.
Meanwhile, a photographer in the area covering events for the Belfast Telegraph newspaper reported that his vehicle was attacked and damaged.
Police initially responded to reports that a separate car had been hijacked by a group of masked men on Fingal Street at around 8.45pm.
Shortly afterwards, the vehicle was deliberately driven at the front of a business on the nearby Woodvale Road, causing minimal damage to the building, before the men made off.
Officers were immediately deployed to the scene when it was reported, just after 9.25pm, that masked men were smashing windows in the Rathlin Street area.
Hate crimes
Photographer Kevin Scott said on Twitter/X that the business targeted was an estate agents and that while covering the incident, his car was attacked by a group of masked men.
He later posted footage of some of the group involved in damaging his car attacking homes in the area, which he said belonged to foreign nationals.
In a statement last night, the PSNI said three men, aged 26, 28 and 41, were arrested on suspicion of offences including criminal damage.
"I want to reassure the community that our officers remain in the area tonight, and north Belfast residents will be aware of their visible presence on the streets," said Superintendent Allister Hagan.
"Our enquiries into the reports we have received this evening, which we are treating as racially-motivated hate crimes, are ongoing and we would encourage anyone with information to contact us on 101, or 999 in an emergency, quoting reference 1609 of 06/08/24."
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