SINN Féin has hit out at a "sinister" Facebook post by a branch of the DUP which warned Irish language protesters dressed as crocodiles that they could get "seriously hurt".
The post, by the DUP's West Belfast branch, referred to a protest by members of Sinn Féin Republican Youth, dressed as crocodiles, outside Nelson McCausland's constituency office on the Ballysillan Road in north Belfast on Tuesday.
The protest came a day after DUP leader Arlene Foster, speaking at her party's election launch, said she would "never" agree to an Irish language act, adding: "If you feed a crocodile it will keep coming back for more".
The DUP's West Belfast branch posted: "We utterly condemn Sinn Féin Republican Youth raising tensions by coming into unionist areas with Irish language signs for a sneaky photo then scurrying off.
"They need to catch themselves on before someone gets seriously hurt as a result of their mindless antics.
"They will try everything they can for a reaction and then turn and twist the whole so they look like the victim!!!"
Sinn Féin's Orlaithí Flynn called on the DUP to explain the "sinister" post.
Ms Flynn said: "The insinuation the young protesters were seeking a reaction so they could act as victims is just insulting.
"The support shown to the protestors on the Ballysillan Road from passing motorists shows the DUP are out of step with wider society with its contempt for the Irish language and identity."
She added: "I would call on the DUP to distance itself from these sinister comments and reassure young people that the right to peaceful protest should be respected."
In a separate post, the West Belfast DUP branch hit out at Alliance leader Naomi Long's decision to post an image of an Irish language election poster on social media.
The West Belfast DUP wrote: "Good to see Naomi Long embracing her Irish culture on her profile page. This is a wake up call to unionists on the Alliance party's direction in relation to a clear nationalist/republican agenda of all people to speak the Irish language in the future."
