Press Association photographer shot during Belfast riots

A Press Association photographer was shot in the leg yesterday during the second night of riots in east Belfast.

The news agency declined to give further details this morning or name the photographer, but a police spokesman said they are in a stable condition at hospital, widely reported to be the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast.

Press reported that police had since urged them to stay out of the area "for their own safety".

The force is treating the shooting as attempted murder and an investigation is ongoing. More details are expected later this morning.

The BBC quoted a fellow photographer said to be standing with other representatives of the media at the time.

"I looked back and there was somebody peering over the wall and he shot about five or six rounds," he told the broadcaster.

"We were all just running."

He added he had since spoken to the injured photographer who said "he's doing fine".

According to a spokesman for the police, officers were attacked with petrol bombs, paint bombs, laser pens and masonry during what is being reported as "the worst trouble in the area for a decade".

The National Union of Journalists, of which the photographer is said to be a member of, today strongly condemned the shooting.

"This photographer was injured while doing his job. It is vital that journalists should be allowed to carry out their duties without fear of attack from any quarter," NUJ Irish secretary Séamus Dooley said in a report.

"This incident is part of a sinister assault on the people of Northern Ireland. The riots of the past two days represent a wider attack on the community, who have a right to live in peace."

Update: The photographer has been named by the National Union of Journalists as Niall Carson. The Press Association has declined to comment further or confirm his identity.

Carson was released from hospital on Thursday 23 June following surgery.

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