Irish police intercept car with bomb near Northern Ireland border

Irish police intercepted a car with a concealed explosive device near the Northern Ireland border on Wednesday, July 24, the police announced on Friday.

The car was driven by a young woman who was arrested and remains in pretrial detention. A man was also arrested later and remains in custody. Both are held on suspicion of offenses against the state. It is not yet known where the woman intended to go with the bomb.

The Irish Army Bomb Disposal Unit was called to examine the vehicle.

Two other car bomb incidents have occurred in Northern Ireland this year. In April, a bomb exploded near a police station on the outskirts of Belfast, causing no injuries. Another attempt to bomb a police station was thwarted by officers who detonated the device in a controlled explosion.

Irish police chief Justin Kelly stated that there is a small minority of dissident republicans who disagree with the Good Friday Agreement and have not laid down their arms. He described them as radical republicans, adding that this threat will persist for some time.

These incidents recall the Northern Ireland communal conflict that lasted from the late 1960s until the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, in which nearly 3,600 people were killed.