A model depicting refugees in a boat was set ablaze on a bonfire in Moygashel, a pro-British town near Belfast, sparking widespread condemnation from across Northern Ireland’s political spectrum.
The incident occurred Thursday night, just weeks after attacks on homes believed to house migrants in the region.
Police have launched an investigation, treating the act as a potential hate crime.
The display featured eight figures wearing life jackets in a model boat, placed on top of a massive bonfire built from more than 50 wooden pallets. Alongside the boat were banners reading "Stop the Boats" and "Veterans before Refugees," and an Irish flag.
The bonfire was part of annual 11 July celebrations in Protestant loyalist areas, held on the eve of commemorations for King William of Orange’s 1690 victory at the Battle of the Boyne. Bonfires and parades marking the occasion have historically sparked unrest, even after the 1998 Good Friday Agreement brought relative peace to Northern Ireland.
Footage shared online showed a large crowd watching the bonfire being lit, accompanied by fireworks and music from a pipe band.
Sinn Féin lawmaker Colm Gildernew condemned the act as "deplorable" and accused it of inciting hatred.
Ulster Unionist Party leader and current health minister Mike Nesbitt also criticised the display, saying it was “sickening, deplorable and entirely out of step with what is supposed to be a cultural celebration.”
Both had previously urged for the effigies to be removed before the fire.
The incident follows recent unrest in Ballymena, where masked individuals attacked police, and set homes and vehicles ablaze, raising further concerns about growing tensions surrounding immigration and cultural expressions.
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As the Ukraine war is highlighted by some leaders during the United Nations' 81st General Assembly meeting in New York, Russian forces attacked the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on Thursday with ballistic missiles, killing two people and injuring six, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
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U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in New York on Wednesday, as Washington pushes for an end to the war in Ukraine and Kyiv and Moscow continue to strike energy infrastructure.
U.S. President Donald Trump said his team held a three-hour meeting with an Iranian delegation in New York that he described as “very good” and “productive”, with another round of talks scheduled soon.
The 81st UN General Assembly continues in New York on Wednesday, with another day of high-level speeches and diplomatic meetings. The wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, global security and international cooperation remain at the centre of discussions.
As the Ukraine war is highlighted by some leaders during the United Nations' 81st General Assembly meeting in New York, Russian forces attacked the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on Thursday with ballistic missiles, killing two people and injuring six, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
The 81st UN General Assembly returns for its third day in New York on Thursday, with world leaders delivering high-level speeches and holding diplomatic meetings. Restoring trust, managing global transformation, peace and security, and international cooperation remain at the centre of discussions.
Australia says an OpenAI AI agent gained unauthorised access to a government Medicare statistics portal in June, in what officials say could be an unprecedented case of an AI system breaching a government network.
Pakistan says it carried out air strikes on 10 locations in Afghanistan on Thursday, targeting sites it said were used to store and launch drones, as tensions between the two neighbouring countries continued to escalate.
Here’s your AnewZ Daily Brief for 24 September 2026, with five key developments from the second day of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.
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