A car carrying Sinn Fein's chief negotiator Mr Martin McGuinness was attacked by loyalists today, Sinn Féin claimed.
A mob surrounded the vehicle outside council offices in Ballymoney, Co Antrim, as Mr McGuinness and a party colleague prepared to meet a number of groups from the area.
Stones and bottles were thrown and the crowd of a dozen kicked and hammered the car, according to Sinn Féin.
The party also said the mob included three members of the DUP.
"Philip McGuigan and myself were scheduled to meet a number of local groups in Ballymoney Council Offices this afternoon. On our arrival at the offices a crowd of around a dozen loyalists had obviously been made aware of my visit and began to attack my car," Mr McGuinness said.
"Serious damage was caused before we were able to get away," he added.