July 14, 2012 – IRELAND – A night of serious rioting after rival Protestant and Catholic parades were allowed to go ahead within hours of each other in the nationalist Ardoyne district of north Belfast has left 20 police officers injured. The chairman of the Northern Ireland Parades Commission has defended the decision to allow to parades to take place. The Commission was established to adjudicate on contentious marches, and even though there has been major trouble at this particular Catholic/Protestant flashpoint every year for over a decade, the chairman Peter Osborne said given the circumstances, the rulings were correct. Mr. Osborne told BBC Radio Ulster: “It is complete and utter nonsense to blame the Parades Commission for the violence last night. There has been violence in this location for many, many years now.” He added: “It is time for politicians to take ownership of contentious parades… that’s the way forward.” In Londonderry, Northern Ireland’s second largest city, petrol bombs were thrown in the nationalist Bogside but no injuries reported. One car has been set alight after a petrol bomb was thrown at it in the Fahan Street area. Petrol bombs and bricks were thrown at police by nationalists and loyalists in Ardoyne. The officers’ injuries are not believed to be serious. Police responded by using water cannons to contain the crowds. Six non-lethal baton rounds have been fired by the security forces. There have been two arrests, although police expect more to follow. –Belfast Telegraph
Civil unrest in Israel: Shocking event during social protest in Tel Aviv: A Haifa resident in his 40s set himself on fire on Saturday during a march for social justice on Tel Aviv’s Kaplan Street and was rushed to the Sourasky Medical Center suffering from third degree burns on 80% of his body. He was later transferred to the Chaim Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer. Doctors in Sourasky said there is no danger to his life but that he is in serious condition. Earlier on Saturday, some 10,000 protesters marched from Habima Square towards the government compound on Kaplan Street to mark one year since the first tent was erected in Tel Aviv’s Rothschild Boulevard. “Today we are marking a one year anniversary to the civil awakening, to our taking of the streets and the profound understanding that we have stood by too long while our future was being sold away,” protest leader Daphni Leef said. Meanwhile, dozens marched along Tel Aviv’s promenade as part of a separate protest. The demonstrators are carrying signs which read “The answer for rent – revolution” and chanting “The people demand social justice.” Thousands marched in Jerusalem and dozens gathered in Haifa and Afula. –Ynet
