It comes as Stephen Ogilive’s family have called for an end for violent scenes
Disorder on the Newtownards Road in Belfast
Police have issued a statement in relation to AI posters being shared on social media calling for more protests across Northern Ireland.
Over the past few days, an AI generated poster listing places across Northern Ireland calls for “mass protests” from 7pm. It also calls for all businesses to close by 5.30pm.
Violence broke out in the city on Tuesday, June 9, in the wake of a knife attack in North Belfast on Monday night. A man is in hospital with serious wounds after the attack, and a 30-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder.
Hadi Alodid, who is Sudanese, was arrested at the scene and appeared in court on Wednesday. He was remanded into custody.
Following the attack on Monday night, people took to the streets across the city, with homes and vehicles set alight and many residents targeted based on their skin colour. A second night of disorder unfolded on Wednesday, June 10, with twelve police officers injured and sixteen people arrested.
A further AI post has been shared on social media throughout Thursday, despite the insistence from many community groups that such protest plans are “fake.”
In response, a spokesperson for the PSNI said: “We are maintaining an ongoing assessment in relation to social media posts calling for planned protests across Northern Ireland. A policing response has been prepared, if needed, to ensure public safety and to help minimise any potential disruption to the wider community.”
Police will be “back on the ground” in Belfast with “bolstered” numbers on Thursday evening, PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson has said.
He told a press conference in Belfast: “Tonight, we will be back on the ground in significant numbers.
“Our numbers, bolstered by our colleagues from Great Britain, who are joining us on mutual aid, will see officers deployed all across Northern Ireland to protect our communities and to prevent disorder.
“Let me be clear, there can be peaceful protest, it is part of a democratic society. What we saw bears no resemblance to that.”
Meanwhile, the parents of knife attack victim Stephen Ogilvie have said they do not want the attack on their son to be “used as an excuse for intimidation or division within our society,” as his condition begins to improve.
DUP Leader Gavin Robinson said he has spoken with the parents of the victim of the stabbing in North Belfast on Thursday afternoon and that he currently remains in a coma in hospital but will hopefully be released from this within the next day or two.
Speaking at Stormont, the East Belfast MP said that Mr Ogilvie’s parents have spoken out against the recent violent disorder that has taken place and also called for an end “to the misinformation, the falsehoods and the lies” that have been circulating following the incident on Kinnaird Avenue on June 8.
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