Family escape petrol bomb attack

A family were asleep in bed when a petrol bomb was thrown into their house setting the building alight, Northern Ireland police said today.

A couple and their 20-year-old son were woken by the fire alarm at 1.30am after the attack on their home in Larne, Co Antrim.

A police spokeswoman said a brick was thrown through a downstairs window followed by a petrol bomb.

The family managed to escape and were treated for smoke inhalation. The spokeswoman said the front porch of their house was badly damaged.

The incident is being investigated by officers who do not, as yet, know what the motive for the attack may have been.