A young boy has suffered a serious eye injury after being struck in the face with a firework thrown by a group of youths - prompting calls for such “reckless” behaviour to end.
The 12 year old was taken to hospital following the incident in the Stewartstown Road area of Dunmurry on Saturday.
Police said it had been “traumatic to both the young male and his family” and called it a “reckless assault”.
Officers are urging parents ahead of Halloween to warn their children about getting involved in such behaviour.
MLA Danny Baker said it was the “latest in a series of reckless incidents” which have been taking place “for far too long”.
“My thoughts are with the young boy who suffered this serious facial injury, and his family. I hope he has a speedy recovery,” he said.
“This is the latest in a series of reckless incidents which have been going in the Colin area for far too long.
“I would urge parents and young people to be aware of the significant harm which fireworks can cause, and also remind them of the fact it is illegal to posses these without a license.
“I will continue to work alongside local community and youth groups, Belfast City Council and the PSNI to put an end to this disgraceful behaviour.”
SDLP councillor Paul Doherty stressed that “fireworks are not toys” and urged young people to “think about the dangers” before illegally obtaining them.
“This incident underlines the seriousness of messing around with fireworks, what might seem like a bit of fun could, in an instant, leave someone with permanent, life-changing injuries or worse,” he warned.
“Fireworks are not toys, they are dangerous and there are significant laws around using them as a result.
“If you don’t have the appropriate license then you shouldn’t have access to the fireworks in the first place and I would appeal to our young people to take care and think about the dangers before illegally obtaining these products putting themselves and their friends at risk. I would also ask parents to make sure their children are aware of the dangers and don’t engage in this kind of behaviour.
“My thoughts are with the young boy who was taken to hospital following this incident. He has been left with a serious eye injury and I join everyone in wishing him a full and quick recovery.”
A PSNI spokesman said: “I would ask parents to consider how they would feel, if this was their child who had endured these injuries.
“As we approach the Halloween period, I would ask local parents and guardians to speak to their young people about where they are and who they are with, and to warn them of the dangers of getting involved in this type of behaviour.
“They could injure themselves or others, and end up with a criminal record which would impact their future employment and travel prospects.”