A republican paramilitary group has said it shot a man in north Belfast last week.
In a statement, Óglaigh na hÉireann (ÓNH) claimed it was responsible for shooting the victim once in each leg in the Strathroy Park area of Ardoyne at around 8pm on Tuesday.
While the man’s injuries were serious, they are not thought to be life-threatening.
It is understood the victim, aged in his 30s, was held by the paramilitary group for a time before he was shot.
Using a recognised codeword, ÓNH has also issued a threat against three men they claimed are associates of the victim.
While ‘punishment-style’ gun attacks carried out by paramilitary groups have been rare in recent years, they continue to be carried out sporadically.
In recent years, ÓNH has been linked to a string of gun and other attacks against alleged drug dealers.
Before Christmas the group said it left 11 pipe bombs across counties Armagh, Antrim and Derry and threatened to take further action against alleged dealers, claiming it was going to target “luxury cars” and homes with incendiary devices.
A forensic office searches an alleyway in the Ardoyne area where a man was hot in both legs. PICTURE: MAL MCCANN 
Pictures of armed Óglaigh na hÉireann (ÓNH) members were circulated last year
In 2024 the republican group threatened to target the Co Armagh crime gang known as ‘The Firm’.
ÓNH has been linked to the murder of several suspected drug dealers, including Jim Donegan in 2018 and Sean Fox in 2022, both in west Belfast.
Alliance Party Policing Board member Peter McReynolds said last week’s shooting was “a shocking act of violence”.
“There is absolutely no place for guns or violence on our streets and my thoughts are with the individual who was attacked,” he said.
“I want to thank the PSNI for the increase in their presence in the area and helping the local community who are understandably shaken by this.”