Arson attack treated as racially motivated

Local officers are working to identify the perpetrators

An arson attack in south Belfast on Monday is being treated as a racially-motivated hate crime, police have said.

A member of the public informed the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) just after 23:00 BST that a vehicle was on fire on Frenchpark Street.

The occupants of the property were unharmed.

The PSNI said that the fire is believed to have started from two sources.

One is believed to be from a motorcycle outside the living room window of the property, which was deliberately set on fire, destroying the vehicle and burning the windows.

The second fire is believed to have been set underneath a car, damaging the vehicle’s wheels and engine bay.

The Police Service are treating this incident exceptionally seriously

MP for south Belfast Claire Hanna told BBC News NI that "ultimately, its yet another dent in the sense of security of lots of people of ethnic minorities in south Belfast".

“I’m furious, and I am frustrated. Just last week, many thousands of people across all neighbourhoods in Belfast, including this one, said very clearly that this isn’t the politics, atmosphere or approach we want," she added.

Sinn Féin MLA Deirdre Hargey described the attack as "absolutely appalling and disgusting".

She said that it was "not reflective of the majority of our community who embrace and welcome the huge positives of diversity in our society".

The PSNI called on the community to “not let these criminals hide amongst us”.

In a statement Det Insp Angus said: "We are treating this as arson with intent to endanger life, with a racial hate motivation."

"We are grateful that those present in the property were uninjured, though we are very aware that we could potentially have been dealing with much more serious consequences this morning," the officer said.

Det Insp. Angus continued: "There is no place in our society for such behaviour. We will be tireless in our pursuit of those responsible for this, and any other, hate crime."

Police have appealed for anyone with information to contact them.