Belfast car bomb: Man charged with attempted murder after police station explosion

Belfast car bomb: Man charged with attempted murder after police station explosion
A car bomb exploded outside a police station in the Northern Irish capital Belfast. Photo shows Royal Avenue, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, 16 March, 2026.
Reuters

A 66-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder after a car bomb exploded outside a police station in Belfast, Northern Ireland, police say.

 

A delivery vehicle was hijacked and the driver was forced to take it to Dunmurry Police Station in the south of the city late on Saturday 25 April.

The New Irish Republican Army (New IRA), a militant group that seeks to end British rule in Northern Ireland, told the Belfast-based newspaper "The Irish News" on Tuesday that it was responsible for the attack.

The paramilitary group said its intention was to kill police officers as they were leaving the station.

A man was arrested by police in Northern Ireland under the UK Terrorism Act on the same day in the local area.

Police said he has now been charged with attempted murder, hijacking, possession of explosives with the intent to endanger life, possession of articles for use in terrorism, and causing an explosion.
He is due to appear in court on Saturday 2 May.

Northern Ireland's fragile peace 

The New IRA is considered the largest and most active armed group in Northern Ireland rejecting the Good Friday Agreement, an almost 30-year-old peace deal that ended decades of ethno-nationalist conflict.

The Good Friday Agreement established a devolved government in Northern Ireland, with power shared between those who support Irish reunification and those who want Northern Ireland to remain part of the UK.

The peace deal resulted in unionist and nationalist paramilitary groups, most notably the Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), agreeing to disarmament.

More than 3,500 people died in sectarian conflict in Northern Ireland, known as "the Troubles", between 1969 and 1998.

Previous New IRA attacks 

The New IRA was formed in 2012 and has carried out a number of murders since its formation, including the killings of two prison officers in 2012 and 2016.

It also claimed responsibility for the murder of 29-year-old journalist Lyra McKee in Londonderry, also known as Derry, in 2019.

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