Ormeau arrest: PSNI asked not to comment

The Police Ombudsman has written to the chief constable asking that "no further public comment or disclosures" are made while an incident on Ormeau Road is investigated.

The police watchdog launched the investigation after a survivor of a loyalist gun attack was arrested at a memorial last week.

One officer was suspended and another "re-positioned" following the incident.

The Police Federation told BBC News NI that it had not ruled out legal action.

A spokesman said they would "exhaust all internal processes in defending our members in this case" but had "not ruled out legal action, including seeking a judicial review, in respect of this matter".

In a statement, the Police Ombudsman said that "as police actions at Friday's Ormeau Road event are the subject of an ongoing Police Ombudsman investigation, we have asked police to provide no further public comment or disclosures about the matters under investigation".

"Our role is to gather and assess all relevant evidence, and then to provide an independent and impartial assessment of the appropriateness of police actions," a spokesperson said.

"The outcome of that investigation will be made public in due course."

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald raised the issue in the Dáil on Wednesday, saying questions had been raised about the impartiality of the PSNI.

The taoiseach (Irish prime minister) responded saying he understands "completely the anger provoked" by the incident.

Mícheál Martin urged politicians to focus their energy into the mechanisms of holding the PSNI to account.

"I would call on everyone in positions of political influence to avoid escalating a political argument about policing and instead use the very strong political processes of accountability that are in place," he said.