Belfast Bomb Scares 12 July 2009 - Central Station 03

Security alerts cause rush hour chaos

By Claire McNeilly

Saturday, 11 July 2009

The Army examines a suspect van during the security alert at Cityside retail park in Belfast

Northern Irelands security forces are braced for a busy weekend after rush hour traffic was plunged into chaos amid a series of security alerts.

Army bomb experts were yesterday tasked to sites in Belfast, Londonderry and Strabane as tensions began to rise ahead of the Twelfth celebrations.

The disturbances follow a series of tit for tat attacks on Catholic churches and Orange halls in Ballymena, Cullybackey, Ahoghill and Portglenone this week.

And they come as the PSNI gear up for a massive province-wide bonfire and parades policing operation over the next two days.

Dissident republicans were suspected of being behind the alerts but last night Sinn Fein MLA Alex Maskey refuted the allegation.

I wouldnt automatically be jumping to the conclusion that it was dissident republicans, he told the Belfast Telegraph.

With all the tensions around most people are trying to ease them, so whoever was behind this was very irresponsible.

An object found in a bag at Belfasts Donegall Road was last night described by police as a deliberate hoax device.

In north Belfast, a suspect van was examined at the Cityside retail park. However, nothing suspicious was found.

Army bomb experts also examined a van near Central Station, but again nothing suspicious was found

Security alerts in both Derry and Strabane continued well into the night. In Derry, both decks of the Craigavon Bridge were closed after a suspicious van was reported.

A suspicious object was also discovered within the grounds of Strabane Police Station late yesterday afternoon.

Elsewhere, in Lurgan a van was hijacked in the nationalist Kilwilkie estate at 5.30pm with the driver forced out of the vehicle at gunpoint.

Meanwhile, Parades Commission chairman Roger Poole yesterday called for peaceful Twelfth parades. The sectarian attacks which have taken place this week are the work of a small minority on both sides who are determined to make trouble over the Twelfth, he said.

"These criminal attacks are clearly designed to stir up sectarian strife over the summer and are to be condemned."

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Belfast
• Bomb
• Scares

[gigliofl]

This video has been shot on the Friday the 10th of July 2009, and of course the bomb scares were related to the 12th!

[thefonze007]

gay