Three teenagers have appeared in court over the alleged burning of a Remembrance Day poppy.

Two 17-year-olds and a 16-year-old were charged with incitement to hatred when they appeared before magistrates in Coleraine, Northern Ireland.

The youngest of the trio was also charged with improper use of the public electronic communications network.

The three were arrested by members of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) after a photograph showing two teenagers burning a poppy was posted on a social networking site.

A PSNI spokesman said police became aware of the existence of certain material on social media networks on Tuesday.

A number of arrests were made and all three were brought before the court on Wednesday.

"Individuals should be mindful of the content of any material they upload onto social media networks," he added.