Assaults on police 'utterly unacceptable', says justice minister

Justice Minister Naomi Long has condemned a spate of attacks on police officers as "utterly unacceptable".

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said 14 officers were assaulted on the evening of Friday 26 December and morning of Saturday 27.

One received hospital treatment for a bite injury.

Long said "one attack on a police officer is one attack too many".

"It is utterly unacceptable that any police officer should come under attack for simply doing their job," she said.

"They are dads, mums, sons and daughters; they miss out on time with their loved ones over the Christmas period to keep our communities safe and they should be supported to carry out their duties free from the fear of being assaulted."

She added that an attack on the police was "an attack on everyone", as injured officers cannot work and damaged vehicles cannot be used which "impacts on the ability of the police to respond to emergencies".

The minister reiterated her intention to introduce legislation to give tougher sentences to people who assault officers or any person "who is providing services to the public, performing a public duty or delivering a public service".

PSNI Chief Inspector Adam Ruston said: "This a shocking amount of assaults on police and it is totally unacceptable.

"This type of behaviour places members of the public and our officers at risk of serious harm and we are lucky not to be dealing with serious injuries."

Police are appealing for information after two officers were injured when a car rammed their patrol vehicle in the Church Road in Forkhill in the early hours of 27 December.

At around 01:40 GMT, a silver Renault Megane crashed into a police car on patrol in the area. The car did not stop and fled across the border.

Ch Insp Ruston asked anyone who may have any information or footage that could assist with enquiries to contact police urgently.

According to the PSNI's own figures, there were 2630 assaults on police between October 2024 and September 2025.

In this calendar year there have been more than 100 reported incidents of police vehicles being rammed.

This year alone, 21 vehicles have required repairs at an estimated cost of £140,000.

Earlier this month, the PSNI introduced a dash-cam pilot scheme in south area to try and combat the issue.