A 16-year-old is being questioned by police after a teenager was assaulted by a gang in Sheerness this morning.

A witness has described how he saw the 19-year-old stabbed in his leg and arm before he was taken to hospital for his wounds.

It is thought a group of five or six teens smashed their way through a wooden gate at the back of a house in Broadway, Sheerness, during the chase.

The air ambulance was called to the incident at 12.25am after reports of an assault.

The 19-year-old man was taken by land ambulance to King's College Hospital in London with injuries to his throat, arm, hand and legs.

Emmanuel Kumson, who lives in Alma Road, heard noise outside and saw the victim being chased by five other males.

He said he saw him jump over a garden wall and two of the attackers smash a blue wooden door with sledge hammers to get to him while the other three stood watch in the alley.

Mr Kumson got out of his house and approached the gang and saw one of them stab the teen in the leg and arm as he tried to escape over another wall.

He said: "I said to them, 'do you know what, you need to stop this because I'm ringing the police'.

"They were saying to me to back off."

"We heard someone screaming, but it was more like wailing" - neighbour Kara Green

He said one of them wielded a kitchen knife in his face and as the group turned to focus on him he saw the victim escape and run up the alley but did not say anything.

He said that they asked him to keep the sledge hammers in his property before they made off.

He said the five boys were wearing black clothing and hoodies and appeared to be aged about 15 to 17.

One was oriental, stocky and had an affro. One was mixed race, one white and two were black.

Kara Green, who lives in nearby Alma Road which the property backs on to, said: "Just after midnight we heard banging and then we heard glass smashing.

"We heard someone screaming, but it was more like wailing."

She said they went away and then came back again before some of the group fled towards Trinity Road and the others towards Neptune Terrace.

The injured man is said to have been looked after by a neighbour before paramedics arrived.

A spokesman for the South East Coast Ambulance Service said he was treated at the scene for stab wounds, mainly to his arm, before being taken to hospital.

A 16-year-old boy from London was arrested on suspicion of assault and remains in police custody.

A police spokesman said officers are continuing to work to establish the circumstances.

Anybody with any information regarding the incident is asked to call DC Michelle Wise on 01634 792493 quoting incident reference 09-0027.