Vandals have attacked a Catholic church in Northern Ireland that has been targeted before over years of sectarian tensions.
Paint was thrown at the front door of the chapel in Harryville, a fiercely Protestant area of Ballymena, Co Antrim.
The attack on the Church of Our Lady, where Mass-goers endured weekly loyalist pickets a decade ago, happened early this morning.
Earlier this year, a paramilitary mural, flags and graffiti surrounding the chapel were taken down after cross-community talks. But the overnight attack has aroused fresh fears in the town, where homes have been targeted in a series of suspected sectarian attacks.
Declan O'Loan, a SDLP councillor, said: "We all know of the many attacks on the church at Harryville over the years. But it has been largely undisturbed for some time. So it is very regrettable to hear of this further attack."
