THE weekend's shootings are the latest in an escalation of gun violence in Manchester in the last 12 months.

According to unofficial records compiled by the Manchester Evening News, there have been 23 serious gun-related incidents in the city.

Most of the shootings have taken place inside a `Triangle of Death' - an area to the south/south-east of the city centre taking in Longsight, Hulme, Chorlton-on-Medlock and Moss Side.

Two people have died there in two months. In June, a drive-by left Ucal Chin, 24, dead and Tyrone Gilbert, the latest victim, was at Ucal's wake when he was shot. And last September Jessie James, 15, was murdered in a Moss Side park.

Our figures show at least 21 people have been injured.

In May, we revealed that in Greater Manchester more than 3,000 firearms incidents had been logged in 15 months.

Many of these involved air weapons and ball bearing guns, but it equates to police handling seven gun-related crimes a day.

Actual shootings increased nine per cent, with 120 confirmed incidents - and police said children as young as 10 were joining Manchester gangs.

Other recent incidents include the shooting of a 16-year-old boy on Hartington Street, Moss Side, in the early hours of Friday morning. The boy suffered a grazed leg.

A week earlier, a 14-year-old was hit in the arm after two gunmen on bicycles shot into a house in Great Western Street, Moss Side. And, last Sunday, a 36-year-old man was shot in the hip while walking on Meldon Road in South Manchester.

Speaking about the two shootings on Friday night, Chief Supt Dave Keller said: "This is obviously an extremely concerning set of events in which a 23-year-old man has lost his life and two other people have been injured by gunshots.

"I understand the local communities must be feeling on edge given what has happened, but I would like to assure them we are doing all we can to catch the offenders.

"We have stepped up patrols, we have armed operations running and high-profile local police officers working in conjunction with the community."

He said the police were tackling gun crime: "There is a problem in terms of getting people to come forward, but what I would say is that over the years we have had some significant successes.

"People have come forward to give evidence and to give information. We've had some significant results, some successes in long convictions and prison sentences to offenders. We've had a lot of successes and we're just having a difficult time at the moment."

Anyone with any information is asked to contact Longsight Police Station on 0161 856 4298 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.