A man was described as "ill but stable" after being shot in a south Belfast bar last night. The injured man was rushed to the Royal Victoria Hospital after he was hit a number of times in the chest in the Meadows Tavern on Boucher Road. His attackers targeted him in the pub.
It is understood that the man was able to walk to an ambulance after the shooting, which occurred shortly before 9 p.m.
Detectives at the scene said they had not established a motive for the attack, but dampened suggestions that it might have been a paramilitary or sectarian incident similar to the recent gun attacks in the city which resulted in the deaths of two Catholics and the wounding of several others, following the murder of the LVF leader, Billy Wright.
"I want to stress that this may not be linked to a paramilitary shooting. I can say nothing else at this stage", said one security source.
Police said that a lone gunman singled out the victim in an upstairs lounge of the tavern. It is believed that the injured man was struck by at least three bullets.
The man, who is understood to be known to the police, was undergoing emergency treatment at the Royal Victoria Hospital last night.
The area around the pub, which is in an industrial area of south Belfast, was sealed off after the attack.
Meanwhile, British army bomb disposal experts carried out two controlled explosions in Ban bridge, Co Down, last night after two bomb warnings were issued. Houses and pubs in the town were evacuated during the bomb alert, which was continuing last night.
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