Police in the United Kingdom attempted to remove a replica of a mosque from the top of a loyalist "Eleventh Night" bonfire in Northern Ireland on Thursday night, prompting organizers to light the pyre a day early.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) had earlier said the display on the bonfire in the town of Moygashel in County Tyrone was being treated as a "hate-motivated criminal offense" and had charged a 56-year-old man with incitement to hatred.
Officers said they launched a "significant and complex policing operation" to remove the "hate display" and secure "offending material." But they said the bonfire was lit prematurely while the operation was at an "advanced stage."
A PSNI spokesperson said: "Had the bonfire not been lit, police would have secured the site, removed the offending material and seized it as evidence."
Chief Superintendent Norman Haslett said: "Hate crime has no place in our society and will not be tolerated," and added:
