Did Nazis Attack Nationalists?

Neo Nazis may have been behind street violence in Belfast city centre on Saturday.

Further to reports on www.4ni.co.uk yesterday, the police are now investigating the claims that neo-Nazi thugs were among the mob who slashed the throat of a Celtic fan at the weekend.

As reported here, eyewitnesses in the mainly nationalist Castle Street area heard cries of militant far right slogans such as "Combat 18" and "Section F" from a crowd of up to 50 people before their rampage of violence.

According to eyewitness reports, the gang is believed to have headed up Castle Street dressed head-to-toe in black, wearing baseball caps and armed with knives, bats, batons, knuckle-dusters and broken bottles.

Trouble flared when they attempted to storm a Belfast bar at the junction of Castle Street and King Street.

Father-of-two Hugh McAnally, 32, was beaten to the ground and had his throat slashed during the disturbance and last night remained in a critical condition at the Royal Victoria Hospital.

Eyewitnesses also revealed yesterday they were "under no illusions" they had seen men dressed in "Nazi gear", however, other onlookers on the road also claimed that people wearing Linfield football shirts were among those who alighted from a bus and rushed towards the area.

Superintendent Mark Purden admitted the police were aware of a gang of men roaming the city dressed in black before the attack.

He revealed on the BBC's Stephen Nolan Show the group was monitored at the PSNI's CCTV hub in Belfast on Saturday afternoon and minutes later officers were tasked to deal with rioting.

He later said: "CCTV footage is in the process of being collated and will be examined as a priority."

See: Sinister Link Looms As IFA Slams City Centre Clashes

(BMcC)