NORTHERN Ireland's First Minister Peter Robinson has appealed for calm following two nights of rioting in Belfast which saw dozens of police officers injured.

Almost 40 police officers, along with local DUP MP Nigel Dodds, were injured after trouble flared on Friday night.

A number of people were charged with various offences and appeared at a special fast-track court sitting in Belfast over the weekend.

Mr Robinson said people must heed the Orange Order's call for the suspension of demonstrations over restrictions on a 12 July parade.

He said: "It's very important cool heads prevail in these circumstances and I hope people will obey the announcement and statement by the Orange Institution that people should desist from violence.

"The only kind of protest that is ever justifiable is a lawful and peaceful protest."

Mr Robinson added that it achieved nothing if people were to "simply sit back and allow this to happen time after time".

The violence began as police attempted to enforce a decision banning a controversial Orange Order parade from passing the republican Ardoyne area on the Crumlin Road in north Belfast on Friday.

Disorder then spread to east Belfast during six hours of violence on Friday.

The Orange Order had originally called for protests against the determination of the Parades Commission adjudication body. But in the wake of Friday's violence senior Orangemen called for the protests to be suspended.

Police Service of Northern Ireland Chief Constable Matt Baggott yesterday condemned those responsible for the trouble and also criticised those within the Orange Order leadership who called for protests.

Saturday night's riots saw police came under attack as petrol bombs, bricks, bottles and other missiles were thrown at officers in the same Woodvale area in the north of the city that had previously witnessed serious disorder.

Police responded by firing baton rounds and deploying water canon.

MP for North Belfast Nigel Dodds was treated in hospital after being struck by a brick in the clashes in Woodvale.

He was discharged on Saturday morning.

Some 400 extra police officers from Great Britain were deployed to Northern Ireland after Friday's rioting. More than 600 mutual aid officers from England, Scotland and Wales were already in the region supporting the PSNI operation as tensions surrounding the traditional 12 July commemorations spiralled into disorder.

A PSNI spokesman confirmed the Scottish contingent is due to return home. He said: "There are no plans for further calls for assistance from other police forces in Great Britain. The intention is that a number of those will start returning home tomorrow."

Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers said the Orange leadership should reflect on its role in the run-up to "the 12th". She said: "They have emphasised that they wanted their protest to be peaceful.

"But they were warned by the chief constable that encouraging thousands of people onto the streets at a time of real tension involved significant risks."

She had earlier described the two nights of violence as "shameful".

Meanwhile, rioters in have been warned they will face a judge within hours of arrest after special courts were set up to deal with alleged troublemakers.

Stormont's Justice Minister David Ford issued the stark ultimatum to those contemplating further violence after two successive nights of disorder in the north of the city.

A special sitting of Belfast Magistrates' Court is being held today with contingencies in place to keep it running for longer if the trouble continues.