'I'm so scared, I sleep in a mosque'

Abdullah Ali has made three separate reports to the police

A Sudanese man whose south Belfast home has been attacked multiple times has said he is so scared that he sleeps in a mosque.

Abdullah Ali has lived in Northern Ireland with his family for seven years.

His Housing Executive home has been targeted several times since last month.

He told BBC News NI that his wife and 12-year-old son are now staying in temporary accommodation in Newry.

In a statement, the Housing Executive said it had been working with Mr Ali for a number of weeks and he has been placed on a social housing waiting list.

Mr Ali has been sleeping in a nearby mosque where he said all he thought about was a possible solution to his situation.

"I've discussed with my family - this area is not safe," he said.

"I cannot safely sleep here. When they threw stones, the police came here that time but no investigation, no solution."

Mr Ali's windows have been smashed with bricks and marks can be seen on his front door, where he said people kicked it.

He has had stones thrown at both the house and him.

Bricks and stones have been thrown at Mr Ali's home

Mr Ali has made three separate reports to the Police Service of Northern Ireland.

The first attack he reported was on 12 July. He then reported further attacks on 1 August and again on 3 August - the same day violence and disorder erupted following an anti-immigration protest in Belfast.

Mr Ali's property is owned by the Northern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE).

On Thursday, Communities Minister Gordon Lyons confirmed 131 hate crime incidents had been reported to the NIHE in the last year.

In the first week of this month, 22 incidents were reported.

'My son wants to leave'

Mr Ali said he was hopeful that his family could be moved to a different home in a safer area, but that things were moving very slowly.

His family's belongings are packed up and ready to be moved out, but he has no idea when that might happen.

Mr Ali said his son felt isolated and wanted to leave Northern Ireland, but he added that the 12-year-old was the reason he and his wife came here - so that he could speak English and get a good education.

He said the recent spate of race attacks in Northern Ireland made him feel like Muslims were alone.

"All Muslims now are thinking like me - to leave," he said.

The Housing Executive said Mr Ali has requested a transfer and is on the social housing waiting list.

"His areas of choice are those of high demand but we will continue to work to increase his chances of permanent accommodation in the near future," a statement said.

"Meanwhile, we have provided the applicant and his family with suitable, temporary accommodation."

Attacks on Mr Ali's home have been among a number of racist incidents in which people and their property have been targeted.

A large anti-racism protest took place last weekend in which several thousand people took to the streets of Belfast city centre.