Colum Eastwood condemned a flag on a lamppost in Bligh's Lane in the Creggan area of Derry after it was described as calling for police officers and Protestants to be killed. He said the people behind it do not represent Creggan or the people of Derry.
Eastwood described it as “sectarian hatred” and appealed for the people responsible to take the flag down. He added: “There can't be one standard for sectarianism in one community and another somewhere else” and “This kind of hatred needs to be challenged and called out for what it is.”
PSNI hate-crime response
Police are treating the flag as a sectarian-motivated hate crime. They said any potential removal will be considered in line with their Service Instruction on a case-by-case basis, which leaves the immediate response tied to the circumstances at the site rather than a blanket action.
The flag appeared against a backdrop of bonfire-related disorder in Derry. A petrol bomb was thrown at officers on Wednesday night near a planned bonfire site in the Bogside area, and PSNI Ch Supt Gillian Kearney said the removal of bonfire material from under Lecky Road flyover early on Wednesday morning prompted the initial incidents later that night.
Friday evening at Lecky Road
On Friday evening, police said the Lecky Road flyover was once again impassable because of a blockage, with officers in the area and diversions in place. That keeps the focus on access and policing around the site while the flag complaint is handled separately under the hate-crime response.
Trevor Clarke also described the flag as a “disgusting sight” and posted support for PSNI officers who were “faced with this disgusting sight in the Creggan Estate.” He said they “will not be intimidated from doing their job of protecting everyone in the community.”
Who put up the flag and whether police will remove it are not answered in the source, but the immediate position is clear: Eastwood wants it down, and police are treating it as sectarian-motivated hate crime while the area remains disrupted.
