Man dies in daylight shooting in Belfast

A man has been shot dead in the loyalist Shankill Road area of Belfast.

The victim, believed to be in his mid-40s, was gunned down at point blank range shortly before 1pm.

The busy road was packed with lunchtime shoppers when the attack took place. Stunned eyewitnesses said masked gunmen shot him in the face. Police have not yet disclosed a motive for the shooting.

The shooting took place yards from a loyalist mural in the middle of the road that runs from the city centre into northwest Belfast.

Ulster Unionist Party member Bill Manwaring, who tried to offer first aid to the victim when he arrived at the scene, said: "The injuries were horrific and young children were on the street when this happened. We had 40 years of this area suffering from this kind of activity and there is no reason for this. It is unacceptable."

A local resident who witnessed the shooting said: "I thought it was a car backfiring. I heard about four shots and saw the gunmen standing in the middle of the road wearing balaclavas and orange tops."