Four men are being treated for gunshot wounds in a Belfast hospital following an incident in Newcastle, Co Down.
According to the PSNI, the shootings occurred following a dispute shortly before 3am yesterday in the Burrendale Park Road area of the town. One of the men suffered serious leg injuries, while the others had what police called "superficial" wounds.
Suggestions of paramilitary links are being discounted at this stage, although detectives say they are still waiting to interview the men, who were due to undergo surgery yesterday.
Sources were quick to dismiss the possibility of paramilitary involvement. One well-placed source said the dispute was a "local feud" which was centred on "low-level criminality".
One senior officer said detectives were "exploring all options", and had not arrived at any conclusions.
Officers believe a Nissan Tirano car was in the vicinity at the time, and they have appealed for information.
Sinn Féin and the SDLP condemned the shootings.
Sinn Féin South Down Assembly member Willie Clarke said the local dispute had got "out of hand". Sinn Féin could act as intermediary to help resolve the tensions, he claimed.
"It has escalated out of control in our opinion. We need to set up community restorative justice where the community comes together and begins to solve problems within the community to make it a safer environment for everybody."
SDLP South Down MP Eddie McGrady said the incident was "disturbing, irresponsible and brutal". Party colleague Margaret Ritchie accused the gunmen of "trying to control people's lives".
In Belfast two police officers were slightly injured in the north of the city. They were attacked while investigating a stoning incident at houses at Alliance Avenue and Ardoyne Road. A female officer suffered a shoulder injury, while her male colleague was wounded in the hand.