A man is fighting for his life at a Belfast hospital after a savage beating in the city. The victim is thought to be a 29-year-old Catholic.

The Sinn Féin President, Gerry Adams, has contrasted a recent visit made by the Minister for Foreign Affairs to south Down, where he was photographed with the SDLP candidate, Eddie McGrady, with his absence from the Short Strand Catholic enclave when it was under attack from loyalists.