UK police arrest man over 'barbaric' knife attack in Belfast

A Sudanese man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a "brutal" knife attack in Belfast. The victim was taken to hospital with wounds to his face, neck and back. His condition is described as serious. It comes at a time of heightened tensions in Britain after the murder of student Henry Nowak, who was handcuffed by police while dying after his killer falsely alleged a racist attack. A man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a "brutal" knife attack in Belfast. Police declared a critical incident after a man in his 40s was attacked in the Kinnaird Avenue area of the city at around 10.30pm, local time, on Monday night. The victim was taken to hospital with wounds to his face, neck and back. His condition was described as serious. Footage of the incident circulating online shows a number of people confronting the alleged attacker while police arrive. A Sudanese man has been arrested and remains in custody. Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson, of Police Service Northern Ireland, said: “This is a deeply concerning assault and I have declared this a critical incident. We have commenced an investigation to establish a motive. “This brutal attack will have sent shockwaves through the community causing real concern. I want to reassure the local community that we are treating this attack with the utmost seriousness. Our investigation is continuing at pace." An initial police statement declared the suspect to be a Somalian, leading to the force later issuing a clarification. In a debate in British parliament in London, some lawmakers called for more transparency about the Belfast suspect's background, saying a lack of confirmed information risked fuelling speculation online and stoking tensions over immigration. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the incident as "sickening" and said he had "no tolerance for abhorrent scenes of violence like this on our streets". "My thoughts and prayers are first and foremost with the victim of this savage and barbaric attack," he said in a post on X. The leaders of Northern Ireland's five main political parties issued a joint statement condemning the incident, saying "there is no place in our society for this kind of brutality". "We call for calm and for space to allow justice to take its course," the statement added. Northern Ireland's main political party leaders jointly condemned the attack in a statement, calling it "horrific" and urging calm while backing the police investigation. The deputy first minister, Emma Little-Pengelly, had described it as a "savage and barbaric attack". Constable Henderson urged members of the public to not repost the video online. "Doing so risks causing further trauma to the injured man's loved ones and may impact the ongoing investigation," he said.