Jimmy Deery, 31, wounded in both legs as rival factions vie for control of Northern Ireland city
A prominent Irish republican dissident has been shot in both legs as rival factions vie for control in Derry.
Republican sources confirmed to the Guardian that Jimmy Deery, a leading member of the Real IRA-aligned 32 County Sovereignty Committee, was injured in the shooting on Sunday night.
The 31-year-old was found wounded in the nationalist Creggan estate.
Sinn Féin's Maeve McLaughlin, a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly, said: "There is no support for these actions in our community and those involved must stop.
"This latest shooting in Creggan serves no purpose and runs completely counter to the work being done to build a safer community."
SDLP city councillor Jim Clifford said: "This is a despicable act which has disgusted the majority of people in the Creggan area. These kind of shootings have no place in our city and must be stopped.
"People here do not want this violence, intimidation and fear being imposed on our community."
He added: "I strongly appeal for anyone with information about this incident to pass it on to the police."
The shooting of Deery comes after a fall in the number of vigilante-style attacks in Derry by the group Republican Action Against Drugs.
Over the last fortnight police in the city have carried out a number of arrests connected to the RAAD terror campaign directed mainly at young Catholic men it accuses of drug dealing in Derry. The Police Service of Northern Ireland has recovered a number of weapons. It is understood, however, that the majority of these are deactivated or replica firearms.
RAAD is comprised of former members of the Provisional IRA who stayed loyal to the mainstream republican movement after it split in 1997 with hardliners who went on to form Real IRA. The Real IRA remains active in Derry and has carried out a number of attacks on police stations over the last 18 months.