Tourists attacked by 20-strong mob
Three Australian tourists were today beaten by a mob wielding iron bars in east Belfast.
The young men were set upon as they walked along the Albertbridge Road by a group of around 20 youths who emerged from the neighbouring Short Strand area.
One of the tourists was dragged into an alleyway where the vicious beating continued. His friends rescued him before all three fled.
A Royal Ulster Constabulary spokesman said one of the tourists suffered serious injuries to his left ear and bruising to his body in the assault.
Appealing for witness to a ‘‘terrible and totally unprovoked assault on three innocent young men’’, he added that police believe another man was attacked in the same area shortly before the crowd set on the tourists.
