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 Bomb find foils bid to kill PSNI officers 11/19/2009 - 3:51:08 PM Security forces have foiled a bid to kill police officers in the North, it was revealed today. Bomb disposal experts were called to deal with a suspicious device in Friary Road in Armagh city last night after a member of the public raised the alert. It has now been confirmed they found a viable explosive device which they said was intended to kill officers. District Commander Chief Superintendent Alasdair Robinson praised the member of the local community who first raised the alarm. “It was that information that helped us pinpoint exactly where the device was, so it could be dealt with by bomb disposal experts,” he said. “The road was immediately closed and Army technical officers called to the scene. A number of nearby houses were also evacuated. “The device was then made safe by Army Technical Officers, who have since confirmed that this was a viable explosive device capable of causing serious injury or indeed death.” The bomb was not a large-scale device, but is thought to have included a pipe and a command wire. The senior officer said, however, that it had the capacity to cause injury and death. Mr Robinson said: “I have no doubt the aim was to kill police officers engaged in providing a community service to the area.” Dissident republican groups opposed to the peace process have launched repeated attempts to kill police. An under-car bomb in east Belfast last month injured a police officer’s girlfriend. He was not in the vehicle when the device detonated. Earlier this year, the so-called Real IRA shot dead two soldiers – Sappers Patrick Azimkar, 21, from London, and Mark Quinsey, 23, from Birmingham - outside the Massereene Army barracks. The attack on the Co Antrim base on March 7 was followed within 48 hours by a fatal gun attack by the Continuity IRA which killed 48-year-old police officer Stephen Carroll in Craigavon, Co Armagh. Two men have been charged over the Massereene murders – prominent Co Armagh republican Colin Duffy, 41, and Brian Shivers, 44, from Magherafelt, Co Londonderry. A 17-year-old youth has been charged in connection with the murder of Pc Carroll. Mr Robinson said the latest murder bid would not deter police from serving the community. “The actions of both our local police officers and of the Army technical officers are in stark contrast to that of the reckless criminal terrorists who abandoned this device close to private homes, placing the lives of those living in this area at risk,” he said. “Police are committed to providing the Armagh community with the level of policing it deserves and requires, and we ask everyone in the community to work together with us, to create an environment in which neighbourhood policing can properly flourish. “Those who operate under various flags of convenience are simply terrorists and criminals who wish to drag everyone back to the dark days of the past by using violence as a so-called political tool. “They have nothing to offer anyone living in this community and I would call on all members of the public to give us the information to detect and bring these criminals to justice. In particular we would like to hear from anyone who observed any suspicious activity in the Friary Road area over the past few days.” SDLP Mayor of Armagh Thomas O’Hanlon condemned those responsible for the device. “This is the fourth device or incident of this nature on the Friary Road this year and the local community are sick, sore and tired of the disruption that these incidents cause, not to mention the potential damage to the local area or indeed it could have hurt or killed someone if the device had exploded,” he said. “This is an irresponsible act and must be condemned outright, all it has done is to cause widespread disruption to the people who live and work in this area.” He added: “Whilst no organisation has yet claimed responsibility for this device, the other devices left at this location in recent times were claimed by dissent groups so the local community is pointing the finger of blame in that direction.” |
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