A Sudanese immigrant attempted to behead a man on the streets of Belfast in Northern Ireland Monday. Pinning him down on the floor, the immigrant stabbed the victim in the neck, face and back before bystanders rushed the perpetrator and struck his head with a hurling stick.

Police were called to Kinnaird Avenue at about 10:30 p.m. and arrested a man for attempted murder. They at first believed him to be Somali but later confirmed he was from Sudan. The victim, who police said was in his 40s, sustained serious injuries to the face, neck and back.

“Last night’s brutal attempted beheading in Belfast is appalling,” said Chris Philp, shadow home secretary. “The government must ensure full details about the suspect’s nationality and immigration status are released. Total transparency is required.”

“If it turns out this man is an illegal immigrant, it would provide further evidence that the government’s lack of border control is endangering the public,” he added.

Hilary Benn, the Northern Ireland secretary, appealed for calm, while declining to comment on the attempted murderer’s immigration status. He said that it’s “innocent people who suffer” when tensions are inflamed.

“The horrific attack in Belfast last night is sickening,” said Britain’s prime minister, Keir Starmer. “I have absolutely no tolerance for abhorrent scenes of violence like this on our streets.”

Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom.

The leaders of various political factions in Northern Ireland issued a joint statement, saying they stand “united in our condemnation of the horrific incident in North Belfast last night.”

“There is no place in our society for this kind of brutality,” they said in their statement. “Our immediate thoughts are with the victim and his family, and we hope he makes a full and complete recovery. Our thoughts are also with those eyewitnesses to the incident, as well as those brave members of the public who intervened.”

Kemi Badenoch, leader of the Conservative Party in Great Britain and a staunch supporter of Israel, also weighed in.

“I’m absolutely horrified. It is a horrific incident,” she said. “I haven’t heard anything about who the attacker might have been, but I think a lot of people will start wondering yet again, is this someone who should not have been in our country? Have there been failings around our borders?”

Another video posted to social media claimed to show men with knives dancing in Belfast following the incident, in apparent celebration of the attempted murder.