Church leaders appeal for calm over Derry attacks

There have been appeals for calm from church leaders following a spate of incidents in Londonderry over the weekend, which police have described as sectarian hate crimes.

Officers are investigating an assault on three young men in the Nelson Drive area, an organised fight in the Waterside area, an attack on a bus returning to the city, and a paint attack on a mural in the Fountain estate.

Police came under attack from youths throwing bricks, bottles, and fireworks in one of the incidents, while a vehicle carrying two police dogs was also targeted.

Catholic Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown and Church of Ireland Bishop of Derry and Raphoe Andrew Forster condemned the incidents and appealed for no escalation.

"This city has come through an awful lot of pain in the past," Bishop Forster said.

"We have built a much more inclusive, warm and friendly place and I want everyone to feel part of that, no matter what part of the community they belong to.

"This is something that all of us can play a part in and seek to have a more positive, better future for a place where we all love."

Bishop Forster said it was incredibly worrying that a number of incidents allegedly involved young people.

"A lot of it, from what I understand is being whipped up through social media, and a few seconds on social media can ultimately destroy lives. It can also destroy the lives of the people who are posting the stuff as well."

Bishop Donal McKeown said "no one benefits" from such incidents and said everyone must do their part to ensure "we have a city we can be proud of".

"The community has been trying to rediscover its dignity and hope for the future.

"At a time when there are so many pressures on young people, it is very unfortunate that apparently a lot of young people are involved in this sort of behaviour where nobody benefits. "

Bishop McKeown called on community leaders to work hard to ensure it does not escalate.

All of the incidents happened between 18:30 BST on Saturday and 23:35 on Sunday and are believed to be linked.

Police said in the first incident three young men in Nelson Drive were chased by a gang of about 10 youths and assaulted in a garden at Caw Close.

Their attackers jumped over a wall and used garden furniture to launch an assault. The three victims managed to get away.

At 17:00 on Sunday, officers responded to a report of an arranged fight in the Irish Street area of the Waterside involving a large crowd of youths, some of whom wore masks.

Bricks, bottles and fireworks were thrown by and at youths and at police.

A bus and another vehicle travelling through the area were also damaged.

A vehicle carrying two police dogs was also damaged in Irish Street at 22:50 on Sunday.

Two males have been arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage in relation to that incident.

Earlier, at about 20:40, a mural in the Fountain was targeted with paint while later in the same area a vehicle belonging to a member of the public was reported to have been damaged while travelling through the estate.

Police said the Nelson Drive assault and the attacks on the bus and mural were being treated as sectarian hate crimes.

Footage of each of those incidents has been widely shared on social media.

"Anyone who engages in anti-social behaviour needs to consider the consequences of their actions," Ch Insp Luke Moyne said.

"We are continuing to work with relevant partners and stakeholders, focusing our patrols where they are needed and taking positive action where we can," the senior officer added.

Fountain community worker Brian Dougherty condemned the incidents over the weekend.

"There seems to have been an unfortunate build up of tensions," he told BBC News NI.

Strong leadership is needed "to help ensure it doesn't get out of hand," he said.

"It has to stop. We need to make sure we have the structures and the good will in place to make sure it does stop."

Democratic Unionist Party MLA Gary Middleton said it had "been a deeply disturbing weekend of intimidation and attacks in Londonderry".

"As with previous incidents I strongly condemn any acts of violence and intimidation," he added.

Calling on anyone with information to come forward, Middleton added: "Our children and young people deserve better, as we all do."

Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) assembly member Mark Durkan said footage of the assault in Nelson Drive had left him "sickened".

"It is important that peace prevails and no retaliation is sought, inevitably innocent people will get hurt or even worse."

Sinn Féin councillor Christopher Jackson also urged anyone with information to come forward.

He described the attack on the teenagers in Nelson Drive as "appalling".

"There can be no place for sectarianism and such attacks in this society but neither can there be any justification for the subsequent disturbances which took place throughout the wider Top of the Hill area on Sunday.

"Now is the time for calm and to allow the proper authorities to get on with their job of bringing those responsible for the attack to justice."