Catholic man left for dead by loyalists

A Catholic man from West Belfast who was brutally beaten by three loyalists in a sectarian attack and left for dead in the Ballysillan area of North Belfast, will have to wait to see if doctors can save his lower leg.

The man's ordeal began on Friday 21 November, when he attended the Mater Hospital's Accident and Emergency unit with his wife to receive treatment for alcohol withdrawal.

Under the influence of heavy sedatives, the man, wearing an Antrim GAA shirt, left the hospital unnoticed and tried to find his way home to the Falls Road. This was at about 4.30pm in the afternoon.

The 49-year-old Catholic was later found under bushes at Ballysillan playing fields in North Belfast by a man walking his dog and an ambulance was called.

The man's family said he is lucky to be alive. "He has eight staples to the back of his head where he was struck, his back, his legs and arms are bruised. His legs are unrecognisable," said his wife.

"The man who found him thought he had been shot in the head there was that much blood. We are just praying that he'll be all right."

Sinn Féin Assembly member for North Belfast, Gerry Kelly, said "because he was wearing an Antrim GAA shirt these thugs decided they would pick on him".

He said that this latest attempt to murder a Catholic demands more than just words from the leaders of unionism. "There is an onus on all political parties, especially unionists, to use whatever influence they have, such as their place within the Loyalist Commission, to bring these sectarian attacks to an end once and for all."