Dissidents still pose major threat - police chief

Chief Constable Hugh Orde said dissident republicans still pose a significant danger to security in Northern Ireland following last night‘s attempted car bomb attack on a police station in Co Fermanagh.

“If you look at the work we have done and the Garda Síochána have done, there are a lot of dissidents in prisons north and south of the border.

“But, in a way, the more successful we become, the more dangerous that small minority becomes,” he said.

The bomb, which was left outside a police station in the village of Roslea, could have caused considerable damage and even loss of life, according to the senior investigating officer.

Chief Inspector John Maxwell described the attack as “completely reckless“.

“This device was in a green Metro vehicle which had been driven along the public road and anyone who was in the area at the time was endangered by it.

“This was quite a substantial device, 130lbs of home made explosives packed into a beer keg, which, if it had gone off, could have caused substantial damage to property or injury to people in the area or worse,” he added.

Residents of the village had to be evacuated from their homes late last night as army bomb experts dealt with the device. Police said the bomb was crude but capable of causing widespread destruction.

A local community centre was made available to residents, who were forced to wait for hours before being allowed home.

A controlled explosion was carried out before midnight but the security alert continued until early this morning.

A detailed forensic examination of the area was carried out today.

The incident was condemned by Maurice Morrow, former DUP Assembly member for the area. “It shows the despicable behaviour of those who carried this out and, furthermore, it shows the folly of running down security in border areas in particular,” he said.