Orde backs officers’ actions over Meigh incident

PSNI chief constable Hugh Orde has defended the actions of officers who came across a gang of armed dissident republicans in south Armagh last Friday.

The gang - armed with machine guns and a rocket launcher - had set up a road-block in Meigh and was distributing leaflets urging people not to cooperate with the police.

The officers who came across the scene decided not to intervene and to evaluate the situation from a distance.

The decision has been criticised by some unionists, but others have accepted that a shoot-out could have endangered the lives of civilians.

Mr Orde says he is convinced his officers took the right decision and says the roadblock was a stunt by a group of people "trying to be relevant".