A 24-year-old man has been stabbed in Liverpool in what police say appears to be a racially-aggravated assault.
The man, described by police as Arabic, was attacked by two men in Park Road, Toxteth, on Tuesday night.
The victim, who is from the Toxteth area, suffered a number of injuries, including a stab wound to his stomach.
Police said the man, who has not been named, was in a stable condition in hospital. Two white men are believed to have carried out the attack.
Detectives said the pair entered Park Road News store shortly before 2030 BST, where they were racially abusive towards the shopkeeper and threatened him with violence.
Ten minutes later as the shop was being closed, a 24-year-old man known to the shopkeeper was attacked by two men outside the premises, police said.
'Despicable crime'
Detectives believe the two incidents may be linked and have begun an investigation.
Acting Det Ch Insp Peter Parry said: "We completely condemn any racist incidents and are committed to bringing those responsible for hate crimes to justice.
"Incidents like this are rare and we are treating this investigation very seriously.
"I would appeal to anyone who may have information which could help us to catch those responsible for this despicable crime to come forward."
The offenders are described as being in their late 20s or early 30s, of medium build and were wearing dark hooded tops and dark tracksuit trousers.
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