Filipino families flee Northern Irish home after night of anti-immigrant violence

A yellow flare smokes after being thrown at the police by the crowd in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, as people protest over an alleged sexual assault in the Co Antrim town, on June 11, 2025. - AP

BALLYMENA, Northern Ireland: Michael Sancio, a resident of the Northern Irish town of Ballymena, said he was woken at midnight on Tuesday (June 10) by masked men banging loudly on windows.

Sancio, his wife and daughter, and a couple who share their house - all originally from the Philippines - grabbed their passports and a few belongings and fled their home, sleeping at a friend's house on Tuesday night. They said they plan to stay further outside the town on Wednesday because they feel unsafe at home.