LOYALIST paramilitary flags have appeared in the same Lurgan housing estate where sectarian intimidation forced a young Catholic mother to leave her home.
UVF and UDA flags have been spotted in Ashleigh Crescent and nearby on Avenue Road.
In April, Danielle Skelton (21) was at home with her 18-month-old son in the Ashleigh Crescent area when two men approached the front door.
She posted terrifying doorbell footage showing them punching and kicking the door while shouting sectarian abuse, including: “Fenians are in here” and calling on her to “open the f*****g door”.
Police treated the incident as a sectarian hate crime and two men have since been charged with criminal damage and intimidation.
Now it has emerged that loyalist paramilitary flags have appeared in the area.
Alliance Party councillor Peter Lavery said there has been a recent pattern of using flags to intimidate residents in Lurgan.
“A number of paramilitary flags have been erected at various locations across Lurgan over recent days,” he posted at the end of June.
“The erection of these flags is a clear attempt to mark territory and intimidate residents.
"I have been in contact with the PSNI and (Department for Infrastructure) asking for the paramilitary flags to be removed.”
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He added: “Lurgan is a growing, diverse and welcoming town.
"The thugs who erected these flags will not hold us back as we continue to work for a positive future for the whole community”.
Speaking to the BBC after being targeted, Ms Skelton said she had suffered nightmares as a result.
"I saw the door shake and with shock I ran into my bedroom," she said.
By the time police arrived, she showed them the doorbell footage but couldn’t face watching it herself.
"I just felt sick. I couldn't watch it. I just didn't understand," she said.
"I put thousands into that home. I made it a proper home for me and my son.
"The police told me they couldn't stand and protect me all night. They advised me to get a bag and go.”
After being displaced from her home, she also had to spend weeks sleeping on sofas while she found alternative accommodation.
Reacting to the latest incident, a Department for Infrastructure spokesperson told the Belfast Telegraph that flags would only be removed by the department if they posed an immediate safety risk to road users.
“Where there is no such danger, the department will liaise closely with other key stakeholders and seek to provide a solution.”
PSNI Chief Inspector Brendan Green also said it was not the responsibility of police to remove flags, nor did they have the powers to do so.
“There is no easy solution," he said.
"There is no community or political consensus on the flags issue and ultimately this requires a political, not a policing, resolution.”
