Sectarian tensions continue to simmer in north Belfast where another church has been attacked and Catholic children have again been prevented from using the front entrance of their school.
St Mary's on the Hill Catholic Church in Glengormley was damaged in an arson attack in the early hours of yesterday. Flammable liquid was poured through the roof and set alight. Men were seen leaving the scene shortly after 2 a.m.
It is the second church in the parish to be attacked this month. Neighbouring St Bernard's on the Antrim Road was destroyed just over two weeks ago. Police are also now treating as suspicious a fire that damaged Whitehouse Presbyterian Church on the Shore Road last Saturday. The Democratic Unionist MP for North Belfast, Mr Nigel Dodds, described the latest church attacks as "reprehensible". The Sinn Fein Assembly member for the area, Mr Gerry Kelly, claimed the attack on St Mary's was part of a UDA "pogrom" against Catholics. The sectarian stand-off between residents on the Ardoyne Road continued yesterday, with Catholic children prevented from reaching the front entrance of Holy Cross Primary School, located on the Protestant side. The dispute is now entering its second week.
Parents carrying the banner "Give our children the right to education", walked to the lines of police and soldiers separating the two sides yesterday morning. "In order to protect you and your children's safety I would ask you not to proceed any further," the RUC officer in charge told parents. Efforts to resolve the dispute are continuing. Mr Gerald McCabe, whose seven-year-old daughter attends Holy Cross, stressed that communication between the sides was "excellent".
"If they want to talk about whatever, we'll meet. But at the end of the day we're just parents and we just want to get our children back to school," he added.
However, the two groups continue to disagree over what is at the root of the dispute, with Protestant residents stressing their picket at the school is in protest at sectarian attacks on their homes.
Catholic parents continue to demand that their children have access to the front entrance, and have refused the proposal from Protestants that children use the rear entrance for the remainder of the term, which ends on Friday.
"Children and parents have an absolute right to go in the front entrance of any school in safety as Holy Cross pupils have always done," said a statement by the right-to-education committee. The Protestant Concerned Residents of Upper Ardoyne group said Catholic parents had "totally rejected" their proposal to deal with sectarian tensions.