Sinn Féin has accused the British far-right of whipping up violence in the North “reminiscent of the pogroms in 1969 in Belfast”. 

On Monday evening, a man in his 40s in North Belfast was attacked with a knife and remains in hospital with serious injuries. 

Police said he had slash wounds to his back and face, as well as serious injuries. 

A 30 year old Sudanese man has been arrested in connection to the attack and is due in court today, charged with attempted murder. 

In the aftermath of the attack, there were calls on social media for protests across Northern Ireland. 

While some were peaceful, the Police Service of Northern Ireland said there were also "sporadic pockets of disorder", in which houses, bins, cars and a bus were set alight. 

A bus on Newtownards Road in east Belfast after violence erupted on Tuesday night. Picture by: Alamy.com. 

In East Belfast, a group of 100 masked men roamed Newtownards Road, kicking in doors and breaking windows. 

On Newstalk Breakfast, Sinn Féin MLA Deirdre Hargey said most people would be “completely disgusted by the actions of masked men”. 

“What we've seen at the end of the night were a number of houses across Belfast that were actually burnt to the ground,” she said. 

“We did see young families, young children, these are children, these are women that had to actually flee their home late at night in the darkness as these mobs were still in the streets. 

“They had to jump into the back of police Land Rovers and other vehicles to try and get away.”

Protests in Belfast. Picture by: Lab Mo/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire. 

Ms Hargey continued that this is not the first time violent riots have taken place in Northern Ireland in the recent past. 

Following the murder of three girls at a Taylor Swift dance class by Axel Rudakubana in 2024, riots also broke out across the North. 

“Actually one of those shops was in the same area that was burnt two years ago during race riots in Belfast,” Ms Hargey said. 

“It's just completely depressing scenes that no one wants to see on our streets and there is no place for them.” 

The South Belfast MLA added that she cannot say whether there will be further violence this evening, or if the mob will feel they have inflicted enough damage on their communities. 

“I'm hoping we don't because what we've seen was reminiscent of the pogroms in 1969 in Belfast where homes were burnt to the ground,” she said. 

“We have to see that this is an end to that; I think that many people are repulsed by what they've seen because none of this protects people.

“This actually does the opposite; this puts people at risk and last night someone could have been murdered, could have lost their lives.” 

Protests in Belfast. Picture by: Lab Mo/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire. 

Ms Hargey further noted that the protests have attracted support from people in Britain - such as Tommy Robinson, who described the assault as “yet another invader attack on our people”. 

“We see agitation like this and the British far-right using incidents that have happened for their own narrow ends,” she said. 

“They know, when they're calling people out onto the street, that violence normally happens. 

“The same happened in Ballymena last year, it happened in Belfast the year before. 

“And I think those responsible need to be held to account for their actions.”

Main image: Maskd men in Belfast. Picture by: Alamy.com.