A petrol bomb has been thrown at police during loyalist disturbances linked to the Union flag protest in Northern Ireland. A PSNI spokesman said officers came under attack north of Belfast in the Newtownabbey area. Sporadic trouble has erupted for eight weeks linked to Belfast City Council's decision to only fly the flag on designated days like royal birthdays. A series of protests blocked roads around Belfast but most were non-violent and police said the routes had reopened. The PSNI spokesman said a suspicious device was thrown at a police vehicle in the Cloughfern Avenue area of Newtownabbey during an operation linked to flag protests tonight. It is being examined. | 
