Northern Ireland protests ease after two nights of unrest as police surge resources

After a Monday Belfast knife attack sparked two nights of unrest, protests across Northern Ireland largely dispersed on Thursday following a heavy police operation including extra officers and water cannon; about 170 people protested in Whiteabbey and roughly 100 blocked a road in east Belfast, with no major incidents reported. The PSNI said 12 officers were injured and 16 people arrested on Wednesday, and noted that online social-media activity, not a coordinated Loyalist paramilitary plot, was driving the unrest. First Minister Michelle O’Neill condemned racist attacks but praised community solidarity as authorities pledged to stay vigilant.