Paisley condemns sectarian killing of Catholic teenager

Democratic Unionist Party leader Ian Paisley has condemned those responsible for the sectarian killing of a teenager in his constituency over the weekend.

Paisley said last night that the murder of 16-year-old Michael McIlveen in Ballymena, Co Antrim, was a horrific attack that should be condemned by all right-thinking and law-abiding people.

The killing was the latest in a string of sectarian incidents in Ballymena, a DUP stronghold with a small Catholic population.

Some nationalist politicians had criticised Paisley for failing to speak out against Saturday night's attack, but he accused them last night of using the situation for political gain.

He also appealed for calm in the run-up to the loyalist marching season in July, which frequently increases sectarian tensions in the North.