A Palestinian restaurant worker says he and his family have been left “emotionally broken” after suffering a racist attack on their home and then having to move 65 miles away.

Jamal – not his real name – has now lost a job in Belfast, where he has lived since 2019, because he could not get to work in time.

The 27-year-old was at work and his wife and one-month-old baby were at home when their home in east Belfast was attacked by three men shortly before midnight on Sunday.

Since the attack, which police are treating as a racially motivated hate crime, the family have moved to temporary emergency accommodation in Ballykelly, County Londonderry.

But this has put them out of reach of friends, work and medical appointments.

Jamal told BBC News NI the attackers were trying to get inside the house, and telling those inside they had to “go out of this place”.

Two men shouted and banged on the front door while a third jumped on a plastic roof covering the garden at the back of the house.

Though the PSNI describe the damage to the property as minor, Jamal described coming home to find his wife hiding under a bed with the baby, and said his wife has not slept since the attack.

In the early hours of Monday morning Jamal and his family travelled to a friend’s house, where they spent the night.

“I couldn’t sleep in my house that night,” Jamal said.

The next day, he spent hours at the Housing Executive, in the hope of finding somewhere safe to stay, but says they told him there “was nowhere in Belfast”.

The Housing Executive, who have provided temporary accommodation to the family, said they were operating in “unprecedented” circumstances.

A spokesperson said: “The rise in demand for social housing and increased numbers of individuals and families who are homeless and require temporary accommodation has been unprecedented in recent times.

“We will always ensure that placements of this type are for as short a duration as possible and this placement location is reviewed on a daily basis.”

As well as losing his part-time job, Jamal says he and his wife have struggled to get to their baby’s hospital appointments in Belfast since the move.

He told BBC News his wife is “emotionally broken” and that his daughter is crying all the time.

“I feel I am not safe. I felt the same as I did in Palestine.”

“The problem is, I need to wake up at 6 o’clock in the morning to get to Belfast for appointments,” Jamal said.

He told BBC News NI that he has had to spend hundreds on taxis in an attempt to make it to various appointments for himself and his daughter.

“I paid £150 for a taxi to get to Ballykelly. It was night, there were no buses.

“I am scared because I am a new dad, because I have a wife. I think, if something goes wrong, what will happen to my baby and my wife.

“On Monday, I lost my daughter’s appointment. It’s very difficult. My daughter is young. If something is wrong with her, I don’t know where I can go.”

Jamal says he feels alone and scared in Ballykelly, and like he has “lost everything”.

The PSNI’s Sergeant Jackson said: “I am appealing directly to the local community for information on those involved.

“It is absolutely shameful that these men should target a woman alone with her child and I know that the people of east Belfast will share my disgust.

“We will do everything we can as a police service to ensure that everyone, no matter what their background, feels safe in their own home.”

Jamal is hopeful that he and his family can find somewhere to live in Belfast. He says that, before the attacks, he never had any trouble in the city.

“My life was good,” he said.

“It’s a nice area. It’s quiet. I never had any problems”.

In Ballykelly however, Jamal feels cut off from his support network, and his friends.

“All my life in the UK has been in Belfast. All my friends are in Belfast.

“Belfast is my home.”