Youths escape death
Two West Belfast youths narrowly escaped death when a loyalist gang
tried to abduct them near the Village area of South Belfast in the
early hours of Saturday morning, March 20.
Phoblacht has learned that the pair were walking along Glenmachen
Street when a gang of loyalists came out of an entry and grabbed
them.
Fortunately, the eldest youth managed to break away and run for help.
Rescuers arrived at a house in Glenmachen Street where they saw a
house with its light on and heard screaming. One said: ``We kicked in
the door and saw three men trying to drag the second youth out the
back door into the entry. We ran after them but they managed to
escape.'' He is convinced that the youth would have been killed had
they not rescued him. The youth had been severely beaten and a knife
blade was lying on the ground.
A Sinn Féin activist, confirming the story, told An Phoblacht that
she spoke to both youths and examined the boot marks on the second
youth's body as well as his broken nose.
![[An Phoblacht]](http://republican-news.org/graphics/title_gifs/aprn.gif)