Face of Nation : It now wants police to investigate how details of removal contractors were leaked and appeared on graffiti close to the site at Avoniel Leisure Centre.The decision was made at an emergency meeting on Thursday.
The MP for East Belfast said he believed the loyalist paramilitary group the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) was involved in the dispute.
On Thursday morning, the council issued a warning that anyone in the leisure centre grounds would be regarded as trespassers.The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said it would investigate the council’s complaint about aggravated trespassing.
Assistant Chief Constable Mark Hamilton said officers were gathering evidence to see if offences had been committed.
Police carried out a search on Thursday after information was received that suggested a suspicious object may have been left in the Avoniel area, but nothing was found.
He said that if people recognised bonfires were part of Northern Ireland’s “cultural tapestry” then agreement was needed about where they took place and how they could be managed safely.
“Those are the sort of issues that, rather than leave them to the last minute, need to be grappled at an earlier stage by the council,” he added.
Police warned on Wednesday there was a risk of “serious violence” due to UVF involvement and it “could not rule out a risk from firearms” if council workers tried to dismantle the Avoniel bonfire.DUP councillor George Dorrian said the decision not to remove the bonfire was sensible given that no contractors were available to remove it.
Protesters said they tried to compromise with authorities but were determined that the event would go ahead on Thursday night.Welcoming the council’s decision, Robert Girvan, from a group calling itself the East Belfast Cultural Collective, which represents a number of bonfire builders, denied any paramilitary involvement.
“Unless the UVF is 70-year-old grannies and 12-year-old children, there’s no UVF involvement here,” Mr Girvan said.
He criticised the council’s allegation of trespassing, saying that Sinn Féin and Alliance Party councillors were “denying children the use of a play park”.Bonfire builders voluntarily removed tyres after contractors acting for the council removed 1,800 tyres from another bonfire nearby.
Hundreds of people gathered at the Avoniel bonfire on Tuesday to protest against the council’s decision to remove it.
It is estimated there are between 80 and 100 bonfires in Belfast this year, with 35 signed up to an official scheme funded by the council.
