Sean was hit by a plastic bullet and collapsed. The Brits then dragged him into a nearby alley and after kicking and punching him around the head and body, they fired another plastic bullet at point blank range at his head.

Sean was rushed to an intensive care unit in the Royal Victoria Hospital, and is at present on a life support system. Doctors have said that he is in a critical condition and is suffering from severe brain hemorrhaging.

This year alone four people have been killed as a result of being hit by the bullets. They include Paul Whitters a 14 year old Derry youth who was struck on the head on April 15 and died 10 days later; Julie Livingstone a 14 year old Belfast girl who was hit in the face on May 12 and died on May 20; Carol Anne Kelly, aged 11, of Belfast who was struck on the head as she left a local shop on May 19 and died three days later; and Harry Duffy, a widower with a family of seven children aged from 7 to 16, of Benevenagh Gardens in Derry's Creggan. He died almost immediately after being struck on the head, on May 22.

In addition to the deaths, a number of other victims of the Brits are still undergoing intensive care for their injuries. They are suffering from a number of injuries ranging from kidney damage and throat injuries to serious facial injuries and severe brain damage.

Belfast IRSP has described the use of the plastic bullets as "an attempt to force the Republican population into submission . . . a policy which will boomerang on Thatcher and her murderous crew".

He has undergone a four-hour brain operation and is still on a life support system.

The doctors have informed his family that if he survives he will be paralysed down his right side and will most likely suffer permanent brain damage.

This is the second time that Sean has been hit by plastic bullets ‹ a few months ago he received a badly bruised cheek and an eye injury as a result of being hit. He is a well known political activist in the area and in addition to being a member of the IRSP, he is a founder member of the Divis Demolition Committee ‹which was formed to highlight the appalling housing conditions in the Divis flats complex. Sean is aged 26 and is married with four young daughters.

The shooting of Sean sparked off a number of protests about the use of the plastic bullets. Councillor Sean Flynn described the shooting as "yet another attempt by the Brits to murder and maim anti-imperialists".