Loyalist link to shooting probed

Forensic scientists examine the damaged door

Police believe a gun attack on a pub in Londonderry may be linked to loyalist in-fighting.

A 23-year-old man remains in a stable condition in hospital after being hit twice in the attack on Saturday.

Three shotgun blasts were fired through a glass panel of a door at the Cosy Inn, in Church Brae in a mainly loyalist area of the city.

The police say up to 30 people were in the bar at the time.

Groups close to the loyalist paramilitary UVF and UDA have insisted there was no feud.

On Monday, detectives issued an appeal about the car used in the attack, which was later found in the loyalist Irish Street estate.

'Indiscriminate'

Inspector Bob Torrens said it was an indiscriminate attack.

"There were up to 30 people in the bar, and any one of them could have been hit," he said.

"We could be dealing with a murder inquiry here rather than an attempted murder.

"The information we are getting from the community is that it is linked to in-fighting and score-settling going back to a fight that took place in the Tullyally estate on 15 August."

No-one from the Progressive Unionist Party was available for interview, but the party, which is linked to the UVF, said in a statement that there was no feud and relations between the UVF and UDA were the best they had ever been.

The Ulster Political Research Group, which is linked to the UDA, blamed republicans for the attack.

Spokesman David Nicholl also insisted there was no loyalist feud in the city.

Community leaders in Derry have appealed for calm following the shooting.