Usual disgraceful orgy of loyalist violence erupts in north-east of Ireland on 12th July

So called 'Eleventh Night' bonfires were lit at midnight across the north of Ireland as part of a loyalist tradition to mark the anniversary of Protestant King William's victory over Catholic King James at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. The fires usher in the traditional 12 July Orange parades, which are an excuse for loyalist paramilitaries to orchestrate, participate and encourage others to engage in serious disorder. By 1am, the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) had received a total of 327 emergency calls, and mobilised to 164 operational incidents - 57 of which were related to bonfires. In Newtownards, Co Down, a bus carrying passengers was hijacked by masked men, who were believed to have been carrying firearms, and later set on fire. These incidents and worse show the small minded siege mentality of loyalists in Britain's legacy colony in the north-east of Ireland.