By Q Radio News
There's condemnation of what's being described as "sinister" graffiti in Newtownards.
It claims to be from a loyalist splinter group and threatens "war."
There have been several incidents in the town recently connected to opposition to the Northern Ireland protocol.
The graffiti, signed by the Protestant Action Force, a group previously used as a cover name by the UVF and UDA, appeared close to the town centre in Newtownards.
The gable wall at Kennel Lane was daubed with graffiti threatening war.
It stated: “Warnings were made, they haven’t been heeded, our message is clear, a war is needed.”
The threatening statement was signed PAF with a crosshair symbol.
It is thought that similar graffiti appeared across North Down some time between Monday evening and Tuesday morning.
The signs are thought to stretch along the coast from Newtownards, through Bangor all the way to Portavogie.
It was later painted over.
SDLP Strangford representative Conor Houston who condemns the sinister graffiti spoke to Q Radio News earlier:
He added:
''The people behind this don’t represent anybody but a small narrow-minded group of thugs.
''The vast majority of people living in this community just want to get on with their lives and don’t want subjected to incidents like this, which sadly hark back to our dark past.
''Where there are problems in this area they won’t be solved by the people behind this graffiti.
''They will be addressed by our political and community leaders coming together to deal with the issues that impact people’s day to day lives here.
''Problems like unemployment, housing waiting lists, access to healthcare and poor educational achievement are what really matter to people in Strangford and they will only be solved through democratic means.
“This incident has nothing to do with Brexit, it’s about people who should have long since left the stage losing their grip on a community that has left them behind.
''We are sensitive to the identity issues surrounding the Protocol which impact the unionist community and the SDLP has acknowledged them while working to protect the benefits the Protocol brings to everyone in the North.”
There's condemnation of what's being described as "sinister" graffiti in Newtownardshttps://t.co/Ux50xrZbfI
— Q Radio News (@qnewsdesk) December 15, 2021
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