Police officer suffers head injury after masonry thrown during Belfast unrest

By Jonathan McCambridge (PA)

A police officer has suffered a significant head injury after a piece of masonry was thrown during unrest in Belfast.

The officer required hospital treatment after he sustained the injury while dealing with anti-social behaviour off the Westlink on Thursday night.

The PSNI said groups of young people were involved in altercations with each other at around 8.30pm.

Local neighbourhood officers attended after some youths were seen running on to the dual carriageway.

During their inquiries, bricks were thrown in their direction.

The officer who was injured has since returned home to his family but is unfit to work while he recovers.

A photograph released by the PSNI shows a large gash at the back of his head.

Police remained in the area throughout the evening and no further incidents were reported.

Chief Inspector Claire Hamilton said: “My thoughts are with our colleague who has our full support as he recovers from this injury.

“Our officers were attending to bring order to this situation and protect these young people from harm as they were running through traffic.

“Attacks and assaults on us will not be tolerated and should be condemned by all.

“We deal with difficult situations every day and are here to help.

“Assaults on police officers will not be tolerated and will never accepted as being ‘part of the job’.”

Ms Hamilton added: “In regards to this report in the Westlink, I am appealing to parents to know where your children are and do all you can to stop them becoming involved in anti-social behaviour.

“Officers continue to work alongside partner agencies, local representatives and the community to find collaborative and proactive solutions to address the problem.

“We are committed to working towards a solution and welcome any information from the public and local elected representatives to inform what we are doing.

“Our officers will continue to provide a visible policing presence throughout west Belfast.

“Anyone with information from last night, if you witnessed what was happening in the Distillery Court area at around 8.30pm or if you have dashcam footage, call us on 101.”

West Belfast MP Paul Maskey described the attack on the officer as “disgraceful”.

Mr Maskey added: “The young people involved in this behaviour must stop, and their parents must intervene before someone is seriously hurt or ends up in the criminal justice system.

“These activities by a small number of young people are not representative of our community and are in stark contrast to the hugely positive work happening every day across west Belfast.

“Youth and community workers have played a stellar role across the last few months in this area, engaging with young people and providing them with positive opportunities.

“West Belfast is a community continually moving forward and we will not be dragged backwards by the actions of a minority.”

Meanwhile, in a separate incident, a number of officers escaped injury after their patrol vehicle was rammed in Co Down.

Substantial damage was caused to the police car when it was deliberately rammed in the Commercial Road area of Banbridge at around 9.30pm on Thursday after officers responded to a report of a black BMW driving erratically.

A 34-year-old has been arrested on suspicion of a number of offences including driving with excess alcohol in breath, failing to provide a specimen of breath and dangerous driving.

The PSNI and the NI Police Federation have consistently raised concerns about the toll of attacks on police officers and the impact of sickness levels within the force.

A number of officers were injured last month when dealing with rioting which followed an anti-immigration protest in Belfast.

Addressing the Policing Board this week, PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said the force currently has about 6,300 officers, well below the 7,500 level recommended in the Patten Review.

He said that when taking into account sickness absence and duty restrictions, they have in the region of 4,500 deployable officers.

The Chief Constable said he is preparing a recovery plan to address officer numbers.

Photo of PSNI officer who suffered a significant head injury after a piece of masonry was thrown during unrest in Belfast.