Attacker bit off man's ears

A man had both his ears bitten off during a vicious attack in west Belfast today.

The 35-year-old was also stabbed in the arm during the assault at a house in the New Barnsley area and later admitted to hospital with what police described as “serious injuries”.

He was attacked when a man entered a house this morning , attacking him and dousing him with a flammable liquid.

The injured man was first treated at the Royal Victoria Hospital and then transferred across the city to the Ulster Hospital at Dundonald where specialists in the plastic surgery unit were attempting to re-attach at least one of the ears.

A 23-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and is being questioned by detectives.

Police said the attack was understood to be unrelated to a series of attacks in west Belfast which have been linked to a feud between families following the murder in the Ballymurphy area last month of Gerard Devlin.