Loyalist group admits attempted murder of taxi driver

Loyalist paramilitaries have claimed responsibility for the attempted murder of a taxi driver in Belfast at the weekend.

The incident happened at around 10.30pm on Saturday night, after the taxi picked up four men on the Crumlin Road.

One of the passengers pointed a gun at the driver's head and pulled the trigger, but the weapon jammed and he managed to flee from the car.

The Red Hand Defenders, a cover named used by the UDA and the LVF, claimed responsibility in a phonecall to a daily newspaper in the North last night.

The group also said it would be considering all republican ex-prisoners as "legitimate targets" from midnight last night.