Bus set alight, fires spread to homes amid Belfast unrest

Updated / Wednesday, Police and political leaders had called for calm amid the unrest Police and political leaders in Northern Ireland have appealed for calm after disorder erupted in a number of areas last night during demonstrations in response to a stabbing attack on Monday night. Some people had to be removed from their homes and protestors also set fire to a bus in Belfast. A man arrested on suspicion of Monday's knife attack has been charged with attempted murder and will appear in court today. The 30-year-old accused, who is Sudanese, is also charged with possession of an article with a blade or point in a public place and making threats to kill. A Glider bus was set alight in east Belfast The victim of the attack, a man aged in his 40s, remains in a serious condition in hospital receiving treatment for eye, face and back wounds. The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service said that between 7pm and midnight last night, it received 256 calls resulting in attendance at 62 incidents. The majority were in the greater Belfast area, where an additional 21 fire units were needed to meet demand. Bus set alight, fires spread to homes amid Belfast unrest Anti-immigration demonstrations took place in areas across Northern Ireland following Monday night's attack. Masked men set commercial bins alight and pushed them into a Glider bus on the Newtownards Road in the east of Belfast as a large crowd gathered in the area. People gather in front of a burning barricade on Duncairn Gardens in Belfast There were multiple reports of roads being blocked and vehicles being set alight in Belfast and some other areas. In Lendrick Street in Belfast, a car was set alight and NIFRS officers had to remove some residents from houses after they caught fire. PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson said "sporadic pockets" of disorder broke in a number of locations, including incidents in which a number of vehicles were set on fire. Groups of masked men burning families out of their homes is nothing less than disgusting cowardice. This has nothing to do with community. The attack in North Belfast was heinous and wrong. But there are dangerous attempts to exploit that to target... — Michelle O'Neill (@moneillsf) June 9, 2026 In a social media post, deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly said violence does not "advance any cause, it damages it". She added: "Destroying things within your own community benefits no one. "Taking frustration at the evil actions of a person out on those who had no part in it is utterly wrong.