Overview

• Belfast City Council had requested PSNI support to help contractors dismantle the Meridi Street bonfire, citing asbestos contamination and its proximity to a hospital-powering electricity substation.
• At a Tactical Coordination Group meeting, PSNI, NIE, NIEA and health officials agreed that intervention risked greater disorder and infrastructure damage than letting the fire proceed.
• The Northern Ireland Environment Agency removed about 20 kg of suspected asbestos from five locations and secured the site with fencing, sheeting and signage, while Northern Ireland Electricity erected protective barriers around transformers.
• South Belfast paramilitary groups warned of "serious and sustained disorder" if authorities attempted removal, and two High Court judicial-review applications challenging the bonfire’s siting and council call-in were adjourned after PSNI’s decision.
• In Moygashel, County Tyrone, a loyalist bonfire topped with life-sized migrant-boat effigies and anti-refugee placards was ignited as police continued a hate-incident investigation.