Police in the North are investigating two aggravated burglaries in Belfast and Ballymena.

It is understood a number of men entered a house in the Moat Road area of Ballymena in Co Antrim last night. 

A 39-year-old man was assaulted before the culprits made off with a sum of cash. A 32-year-old woman and two children, aged 5 and 3, who were all in the house at the time, were not injured.

The man was taken to hospital for treatment to minor injuries.

Three men - aged 35, 36 and 39 - are being questioned by police.

Meanwhile, in a separate incident on Thursday night, two men - armed with a hammer and a metal bar - forced their way into a house on Lisburn Road in South Belfast at around 10.50pm.

A man, three women and three children, who were all in the house at the time, were made to stay in a bedroom while the property was searched.

The pair then made off with a small sum of cash. No one was injured during the burglary.

Police are appealing to anyone with information to come forward.

Originally posted at 13.20