Officer injured as riot police called to Edinburgh fireworks disorder

Disorder was reported around Hay Avenue in the Niddrie area of Edinburgh

A police officer has been injured and more than a dozen buses damaged in Edinburgh during a night of disorder on Halloween.

Riot police were pelted with bricks and fireworks in the city's Niddrie area, with a female officer hurt when the window of her vehicle was shattered.

An open-top bus carrying young people with disabilities was also targeted with fireworks outside the city’s Dynamic Earth attraction.

A 14-year-old boy was arrested and charged with fireworks offences. It came hours before an exclusion zone on fireworks in parts of the city came into force.

Earlier officers seized a "quantity of fireworks" and two cans of petrol during a raid on a property in the Magdalene Gardens.

Lothian Buses withdrew at least nine bus services due to anti-social behaviour.

Police also responded to incidents at Moredunvale Road, Southhouse Road, Captain's Road and West Pilton Park, where a number of buses were targeted.

Edinburgh city council leader Cammy Day said a total of 16 vehicles from the Lothian fleet were damaged.

He told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland it was a "horrible" night for the city.

He said: "It is despicable, the behaviour of a minority of people in certain areas of the city, attacking public service workers and bus drivers.

"People who live there, good working people. How do they feel seeing their area awash with riot police?

"We need to nip it in the bud now and take some hard decisions about how we deal with young people, but adults as well who were orchestrating this despicable behaviour."

Wheelie bins were melted by fire on Captain's Road

Lothian managing director Sarah Boyd said she was "deeply disappointed" that services were subject to attacks.

She added: "As a result of public disorder we were forced to remove services from a number of areas to ensure the safety of our people and our customers.

"I understand that we provide a vital service and I apologise to our many customers who I know will have been impacted."

On Bonfire Night last year, about 100 young people clashed with riot police with fireworks and petrol bombs being thrown directly at officers in the same area of Edinburgh, while there were similar incidents in Sighthill and Southhouse.

The Scottish government gave local authorities new powers to designate ‘firework control zones’ (FCZs) in 2022 following a major riot in Dundee.

City of Edinburgh Council became the first in Scotland to vote for implementing the FCZ in August.

The measures run from 1 to 10 November and anyone setting off a private firework during this period will be committing a criminal offence.

The council’s culture and communities committee voted against a zone covering the entire city.

The attacks were on a smaller scale than those pictured here which were carried out in the same area of Edinburgh last year

Police Scotland said the disorder was carried out by a minority of individuals "intent on causing fear and alarm".

Ch Supt David Robertson, commander for Police Scotland's Edinburgh Division said: “I want to make it clear to anyone who thinks they will evade justice because they weren’t apprehended this evening, they are very much mistaken.

"You will be identified during our inquiries, and you will be held to account for your actions."

In Dundee, police responded to a "small number" of anti-social behaviour incidents in the Kirkton area on Thursday.

Youths throwing eggs , bottles, fireworks and lighting a small fire were reported to officers, however no one was injured.