Masked youths set fires and attacked homes on Crumlin Road in north Belfast, forcing many long-term immigrants and refugees to flee. Emergency crews, volunteers and Pastor Jack McKee helped evacuate those trapped, while police said some attackers went door to door targeting people they believed to be foreign. The unrest followed viral footage of a knife attack; one man has been charged. Though protests in other towns remained peaceful, schools, transport and services across Northern Ireland were disrupted and displaced families are now seeking shelter.
Racist Violence and Arson Force Families From Homes In North Belfast
There have been pockets of disorder in Belfast and other towns across Northern Ireland [PA Media]
Masked youths in black set wheelie bins, cars and at least some homes alight on a rainy Tuesday night in north Belfast, sending thick, choking smoke into terraced streets and prompting urgent responses from firefighters, ambulances and volunteers.
Pastor Jack McKee was helping families whose homes were targeted [BBC]
Chaos On Crumlin Road
When reporters arrived at Crumlin Road, a predominantly loyalist, working-class area, police kept a cautious distance, both observing and trying to avoid becoming targets themselves. Journalists and emergency crews were warned from the end of the terrace to "leave, or you'll be next", and only approached once it felt safer to do so.
Houses across Belfast were damaged and destroyed during several nights of disorder [BBC]
Two cars were set on fire and several properties suffered arson and criminal damage. Torrential rain scattered some of the crowd, but the damage was already done: windows were smashed, ceilings collapsed in at least one home, and the air remained toxic with smoke.
Rioters burned a bus in east Belfast on Tuesday - bus and rail services were suspended across Northern Ireland for several nights [PA Media]
People Targeted Because Of Ethnicity
Volunteers and emergency workers evacuated residents, including long-term immigrants and refugees. A group of African women were led to safety; one collapsed from exhaustion and was helped into a waiting car. Pastor Jack McKee from New Life City Church helped to rescue members of his congregation and expressed anger that families who had lived in the area for decades were being attacked because of their skin colour.
Twasul Mohammed, a Sudanese resident of Belfast, says people were "terrified" [Twasul Mohammed]
“These members have been with us for 20 years. They've been put out of their home… They are good Christian people and they are getting put out just because they are black,” McKee said. “You are hurting innocent people here. There are men, women and children living in fear.”
Colleagues reported masked men had gone door to door, targeting houses they believed to be occupied by people from other countries. An Indian man who has lived in the UK for 25 years — four of them in Northern Ireland — said his family packed quickly and left the area by ferry for the mainland because they feared a return of the rioters.
Trigger And Wider Disruption
The disorder followed the rapid spread on social media of footage showing a knife attack in north Belfast on Monday night. Hadi Alodid, a 30-year-old originally from Sudan, has been charged with attempted murder over that attack, which left the victim, Stephen Ogilvie, seriously injured. Authorities say that footage and online conversations helped inflame already tense community reactions.
While protests in towns such as Antrim and Ballymena were reported to have passed peacefully, the disturbance in pockets of Belfast had wider consequences: schools reported lower attendance as families from ethnic-minority communities kept children at home, public transport services were suspended and shops closed early. Healthcare staff were also threatened — one nurse was chased while walking into work but continued her shift after support from her union.
Aftermath And Displacement
By Wednesday the streets were quieter though the smell of smoke lingered. Some houses had been completely gutted. Many of those displaced are still unsure where to go next; community groups and local churches are helping to find temporary shelter. Refugees and long-term residents say they feel shaken and fearful about returning.
The events have left communities across Northern Ireland grappling with questions about how social media, existing tensions and opportunistic violence combined to create targeted, racially motivated attacks. Local leaders, police and community organisations face the immediate task of protecting vulnerable residents and rebuilding trust in the hardest-hit neighbourhoods.
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