A hate crime probe has been launched after a ‘vile’ and ‘racist’ effigy of lifejacket-clad small boat migrants was set ablaze on top of a Northern Ireland bonfire.

Signs saying ‘Stop the boats’ and ‘Veterans before refugees’ were also attached to the pyre in the village of Moygashel, near Dungannon, County Tyrone, earlier this week.

Despite widespread condemnation and calls to take it down, the effigy was burned at around 11pm on Thursday, prompting the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) to investigate it as a ‘hate incident’.

It was erected as part of the annual loyalist Twelfth of July parades, where Protestants celebrate William of Orange’s victory over Catholic King James II at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.

The towering bonfires, built with wooden pallets, are mostly torched on the Tenth and Eleventh Night and have long been synonymous with Protestant culture.

But in recent years, the Moygashel bonfires have come under scrutiny for their controversial displays which have seen them venture into politics and contentious cultural points.

Last year a mock police car was burnt on the top of the bonfire and in 2023 a boat designed to represent the post-Brexit Irish Sea economic border was torched. 

The latest display, which was also topped with an Irish tricolour, was branded ‘vile’ and ‘deplorable’.

A hate crime probe has been launched after a ‘vile’ and ‘racist’ effigy of lifejacket-clad small boat migrants was set ablaze on top of a Northern Ireland bonfire

Signs saying ‘Stop the boats’ and ‘Veterans before refugees’ were also attached to the pyre in the village of Moygashel, near Dungannon, County Tyrone, earlier this week

Despite calls to take the it down, the effigy was burned at around 11pm on Thursday, prompting the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) to investigate it as a ‘hate incident’

Sinn Fein’s Assembly member for Fermanagh and South Tyrone Colm Gildernew called for the bonfire to be taken down before it was burnt.

He said: ‘This is an absolutely disgusting act, fuelled by sickening racist and far-right attitudes. 

‘This is a clear incitement to hatred and must be removed immediately. Those who come to our island to make it their home are not the enemy.

‘They are our friends, our neighbours, and are welcomed, cherished and valued by the vast majority of people here.

‘Political leaders in this area must step up, call for the removal of these offensive materials and make it clear they do not support such vile, deplorable views.’

PSNI said it had received ‘a number of reports’ regarding the bonfire ‘and the material that has been placed upon it’ and that it was now subject to investigation.

A spokesperson for the force said: ‘Police are investigating this hate incident. Police are here to help those who are or who feel vulnerable, to keep people safe.

It was erected as part of the annual loyalist Twelfth of July parades, where Protestants celebrate William of Orange’s victory over Catholic King James II at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690

The towering bonfires, built with wooden pallets, are mostly torched on the Tenth and Eleventh Night and have long been synonymous with Protestant culture

In recent years, the Moygashel bonfires have come under scrutiny for their controversial displays which have seen them venture into politics and contentious cultural points

The latest display, which was also topped with an Irish tricolour, was branded ‘vile’ and ‘deplorable’

Sinn Fein’s Assembly member for Fermanagh and South Tyrone Colm Gildernew called for the bonfire to be taken down before it was burnt

‘We do this by working with local communities, partners, elected representatives and other stakeholders to deliver local solutions to local problems, building confidence in policing and supporting a safe environment for people to live, work, visit and invest in Northern Ireland, but we can only do so within the legislative framework that exists.’

SDLP leader Claire Hanna also condemned the construction of the bonfire, accusing some involved in the bonfire tradition in Northern Ireland of appearing to be motivated by ‘hate, confrontation and media rows’.

She posted on X, formerly Twitter: ‘Intricate effigies of humans beings, for burning. Who is this for?’

Prominent loyalist activist Jamie Bryson insisted the display was a form of ‘artistic protest’, saying: ‘Every year Moygashel bonfire combines artistic protest with their cultural celebration.’

He said on X: ‘Their yearly art has itself become a tradition. This year the focus is on the scandal of mass illegal immigration.’

Patrick Corrigan, Amnesty International’s Northern Ireland director, described the bonfire as a ‘vile, dehumanising act that fuels hatred and racism’.

Mr Gildernew said the effigy was ‘a clear incitement to hatred and must be removed immediately’ before it was set ablaze

PSNI said it had received ‘a number of reports’ regarding the bonfire ‘and the material that has been placed upon it’ and that it was now subject to investigation

He said: ‘It cruelly mocks the suffering of people who risk everything to flee war, persecution, and hardship in search of safety.

‘Beyond being morally reprehensible, it incites hostility toward already marginalised and vulnerable communities.

‘Amnesty International urges the authorities to ensure its immediate removal and calls on the PSNI to investigate and hold those responsible to account.

‘A clear and unequivocal message must be sent that xenophobia and incitement to hatred have no place in our society.’

The Moygashel tower is one of an estimated 300 bonfires that begun being lit in loyalist areas yesterday and will continue into tonight.

The Moygashel tower is one of an estimated 300 bonfires that begun being lit in loyalist areas yesterday and will continue into tonight

The traditional fires are lit ahead of the main date in the parading calendar of Protestant loyal orders, the Twelfth Of July

Patrick Corrigan, Amnesty International’s Northern Ireland director, described the bonfire as a ‘vile, dehumanising act that fuels hatred and racism’

The placing of flags, effigies and election posters on the structures before they are ignited has prompted condemnation over recent years

It comes just one month after anti-immigration riots in the town of Ballymena, which saw fireworks and petrol bombs launched at police.

The riots, which lasted for over a week, were sparked after an alleged sexual assault by two teenagers of Romanian descent on a girl from Northern Ireland.

PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said more than 100 police officers were injured during the riots. 

Mr Boutcher said after the riots: ‘We saw hate-filled mobs throw petrol bombs, masonry, fireworks, an axe, at police officers, targeting homes and businesses.

‘They targeted law-abiding, decent families from diverse communities who make Northern Ireland a better place, creating fear in people who simply want to live in peace.

‘I can confirm the final number of injured officers as 107, many with head injuries from masonry and other missiles.

He added: ‘There is no place for such violence, these actions were not about protest, they were attacks on the very fabric of our society.

‘What sort of Northern Ireland do we want to live in?’