A girl who was slashed in the back while protecting a baby from a machete-wielding gang must now "learn to walk again", it has emerged.
The brave 13-year-old received cuts to her backs and legs during the brutal attack at a house on Trasna Way, Lisnaskea, Co Fermanagh.
She received a gruesome stab wound to the back as she held her 11-month-old nephew John Joyce at around 9.15pm last Saturday.
The girl's sister Pauline, 20, who is the baby’s mother, has said the young girl is facing weeks in hospital as one of her lungs collapsed.
She said: “Her lung collapsed right away. The way she has been cut means she can’t walk now and has to learn to walk again.
“She’ll be in hospital for weeks. Her back won’t be the same for about 12 months.
“She’s very frightened from what happened. She was just sitting there and they just walked in and two of them started hitting at her."
She told the Irish Sun: “It’s disgraceful, grown men doing that to a girl and baby.”
The baby boy's grandmother Elizabeth Joyce was also taken to hospital but has since been discharged.
It's believed the home which was set upon is the house belonging to bare knuckle boxer Gramesy Joyce.
Police have launched an attempted murder investigation following the assault. The baby was unharmed during the terrifying ordeal.
Elizabeth previously told BBC the Geraldine is a hero for protecting her baby nephew from the attackers.
She said: "It is something that we will never get over.
"The baby was unharmed because his auntie is a hero.
"She's 13 years old and she threw her whole self over that baby, and she saved his life. She is a hero."
The PSNI say they have "several lines of inquiry" but that no arrests have yet been made.
Speaking after the incident, PSNI Detective Sergeant Keith Monaghan said: "This must have been a terrifying ordeal for those involved and we are determined to find the men responsible.
"We have several lines of enquiry which we are progressing at this time but I would ask anyone with information or who noticed any suspicious activity in the area to contact detectives in Enniskillen and pass that information on."
