Orange Order march through Portadown amid court battle

Updated / Saturday, 24 Oct 2026 21:37

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Several thousand Protestant Orange Order members marched through Portadown in Co Armagh ahead of a ruling on a legal challenge to the government's ban on a separate parade.

The marchers, who included more than two dozen bands, walked through the town centre as supporters lined the streets.

They stayed clear of the mainly nationalist Garvaghy Road at the centre of the court dispute following a standoff.

A High Court ruling is expected in Belfast next week after a two-day challenge brought by members of the Orange Order wrapped up Tuesday.

They are contesting Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Bryant's decision to stop their earlier march from passing along Garvaghy Road after police warned of possible disorder.

They are also challenging Northern Ireland police chief Jon Boutcher's request that Mr Bryant reconsider the Parades Commission's approval of that procession.

Tension over the parade became a major sectarian flashpoint during the 1990s.

The march last passed along the road in 1997 and was barred the following year, when the Good Friday Agreement largely ended three decades of conflict over British rule.

The latest dispute began after the commission authorised 35 Orangemen to march silently along Garvaghy Road on 27 September without bands or supporters - the first approval for the route in 28 years.

Thousands of local residents and supporters blocked the procession, triggering a nearly two-week standoff before Mr Bryant made his decision.

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