Residents of Londonderry's Fountain estate have expressed feelings of fear and intimidation following reports of homes being targeted by stone-throwing youths, according to a local assembly member.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) confirmed that officers responded to calls regarding anti-social behaviour in the Nailors Row and Fountain areas of the city at approximately 20:00 BST on Monday.
Police reported that the youths gathered in the area dispersed after engagement with officers.
Julie Middleton, a Democratic Unionist Party assembly member (MLA), condemned the incident as "disgraceful" and noted it followed several earlier attempts to intimidate residents.
Speaking on BBC Radio Foyle's North West Today programme, Middleton detailed that fireworks had been thrown into the estate on Sunday, and earlier on Monday, sectarian slurs were shouted from the walls into the estate.
She remarked that residents "feel a loss of hope".
Middleton emphasized that residents' homes "should be a place of solace and peace" and expressed particular concern for the residents of a nearby care home.
"There are elderly residents there who should feel safe, secure and at rest, not scared and not wondering what's going on outside or if their window is going to be broken," she said.
Violence is wrong
The assembly member highlighted that some individuals involved in Monday's incident were very young.
"We have to ask - who is influencing them, why are their parents not aware that they're out doing this activity people need to have conversations with their families and their children advising that violence is wrong," she said.
"We need to see it stop before someone is seriously injured but also in the interests of community relations."
The attack occurred just days after youths threw petrol and paint bombs and heavy masonry at police during disorder in the Waterside area of the city.
Middleton said no-one wanted to see "a build-up of violence".
"And we certainly don't want to see young people being used in a way where they're being misguided and encouraged to go out and try out these sort of actions," she added.
Depressing, disappointing and sectarian
Foyle MP Colum Eastwood described the latest incident as "depressing, deeply disappointing and, at its heart, sectarian".
He noted that Fountain residents had "become used to regular attacks on their homes from kids throwing stones, bricks and bottles around this time of the year".
Eastwood added: "I am appealing to parents to sit down with their kids and explain the impact it has on a family to have their home attacked or to feel afraid in their own community."
Police have appealed for anyone with footage of the incident or information to come forward.
