Nineteen police officers per week being injured as victims describe headbutt and petrol bomb attacks

The figures for 2022/23 amount to 3,272 reports of assaults on police, equating to roughly 60 per week.

Of those assaults 971 involved injuries – which means 2.7 officers are injured in attacks each day on average, equating to 19 per week.

Superintendent Gary Busch said in a statemnt accompanying the release of the latest figures: “It’s important to remember that these are not just statistics but they represent real people with families and they don't deserve to be assaulted just for just doing their job.

“The assaults on police ranged from being spat at, head-butted, kicked, punched and having missiles thrown at them.

“Assaults on our officers and staff place additional unnecessary burden at a time where our resources are already stretched with declining officer numbers.

"The last thing the service needs is officers not being able to finish their shift due to injury.”

To accompany the figures, the PSNI issued a statement from an office who was among 16 injured in rioting last year in the far west of Londonderry.

The anonymous officer said: “During the disorder, a petrol bomb bounced off the side of one of our trucks, before striking me on the arm.

"I was taken to hospital for treatment to second degree burns and nerve damage, which meant I was off work for a month.

"The worst bit of the whole thing was the toll it took on my family. Thanks to the welfare support in the service and support from my friends and family, I am now back to full duties.”

It also included a statement from a female sergeant who was wounded when a man headbutted her last year.

“All I remember is feeling his head on mine and then seeing stars,” she said.

"I count myself lucky, it could have been much more serious had he got from the front of my head.

“I’m still recovering from the assault, I had pain in my head for two weeks and am still dealing with the mental impact.”

Liam Kelly, the chairman of the Police Federation for Northern Ireland, the de facto trade union for frontline officers, said: “We are not society’s punch bag or a release valve for those who seek to impose themselves and harm and intimidate others.

“There is also an element of internal under reporting so the real levels could be significantly worse.

"Stronger, no-nonsense sentences handed down by the courts would greatly assist to deter would-be attackers. We would appeal to the justice minister to move at pace on increased sentencing guidelines in support of both our officers and our emergency service partners.

“Our officers do not deserve to be targeted in this manner for simply doing their job. They work tirelessly on behalf of this entire community and any assault on them should be viewed as an assault on society overall."