Sinn Fein has said nationalist residents of the Ardoyne area of north Belfast have not rejected proposals by the first and deputy first ministers to ease community tensions.

North Belfast MLA Gerry Kelly said on Friday residents were behind calls for direct dialogue and other initiatives, but were against plans for a wall being built across part of the Ardoyne Road.

Speaking after a meeting on Thursday, a spokesman for the Ardoyne residents said they could not accept the proposals for road re-alignment and a security wall.

Gerard McGuigan said the proposals would isolate Holy Cross Girls' primary school from the community which it served.

He said: "We don't want anything going across the road after what the children have been through which further isolates the school and increases tensions.

Billy Hutchinson: "It's about driving Protestants out of their homes"

"We would rather sit down with those people, agree a situation that both communities can live with and try and build some trust, but that's not happening."

Loyalist residents at the north Belfast sectarian flashpoint voted to accept the proposals during a meeting on Wednesday.

The meeting was held in the loyalist Upper Ardoyne area to consider the plans put forward by First Minister David Trimble and Deputy First Minister Mark Durkan.

They had outlined the proposals to rebuild community relations in the area in a letter to north Belfast assembly members and community representatives last week.

In a statement on Friday, the ministers said they would consider the matter further following the responses from both sets of residents.

Their initiative followed months of serious rioting in the area, which at its most serious, resulted in a 12 week protest by Protestant residents at a Catholic primary school in the area last year.

The dispute centred on alleged attacks on Protestant homes by the larger Catholic community in the Ardoyne area.

We don't want anything going across the road after what the children have been through

Gerard McGuigan Ardoyne residents spokesperson

Mark Coulter of the Concerned Residents of Upper Ardoyne said: "This is not the response we expected to hear and we are very disappointed. We now need to wait for a response from the first and deputy first ministers."

Meanwhile, PUP assembly member Billy Hutchinson has said nationalists never intended to agree the deal, which also involved talks between the two sides.

He said: "They have rejected it because it's a strategy from republicans to make sure Protestants get it tight in north Belfast," he insisted.

"It's about driving Protestants out of their homes."

On Thursday, Mr Coulter said the community had reservations about the plan, but had taken "a leap of faith".

He had urged nationalists to give the plan a similar response at their meeting.

The move followed meetings with both communities who were protesting that initiatives proposed by the two top executive ministers last November were slow to be implemented.