Activists linked to republican group Lasair Dhearg threw red paint at a statue of Queen Victoria in the grounds of the Royal Victoria Hospital on Belfast's Falls Road. The incident occurred on Friday afternoon in the Grosvenor Road area.

Police Service of Northern Ireland received a report of criminal damage. Inspector McCullough stated that enquiries remain at an early stage. Officers appealed for witnesses or anyone with information to come forward.

Hospital staff locked the pedestrian gate at the Grosvenor Road entrance and began efforts to remove the paint from the statue.

Lasair Dhearg posted online claiming the action. The group referred to Victoria's reign during the Great Famine from 1845 to 1852, when one million people died and another million emigrated. They called for removal of imperial symbols including statues in pursuit of a socialist republic.

The Royal Victoria Hospital lies in west Belfast, a predominantly nationalist area. The statue commemorates Queen Victoria, who ruled Britain and Ireland during the famine period known as An Gorta Mor.