Divisive holiday starts with Belfast riots

BELFAST - Northern Ireland’s divisive annual holiday called “The Twelfth,’’ when tens of thousands of Protestants parade across the British territory, got off to a violent start today with riots in several parts of Belfast.

Police said at least seven officers were injured during street clashes that gathered pace after Protestants lit scores of towering bonfires at midnight, the traditional start to one-sided Twelfth celebrations that for decades have inspired bloodshed and destruction.

Tens of thousands of members of the Orange Order, a Protestant brotherhood dedicated to celebrating 17th-century military victories over Catholics, planned to march later today.