The car bomb attack in Londonderry, according to the police, probably goes to the account of a splinter group of the militant underground organization IRA. The investigations were directed primarily against the so-called New IRA, said Deputy Chief of Police Mark Hamilton. Two people were arrested.
According to media reports, the police had received a telephone warning and had just begun to shut down the area when it exploded. The vehicle had been stolen shortly before, the broadcaster BBC reported. According to authorities, no one was injured in the attack in the city center.
Police Hamilton said he sees no escalation in the attack. However, he falls into a phase that warns against a possible resurgence of the Northern Ireland conflict. This threatens if there should be in the course of Brexit again a hard line between the UK belonging to Northern Ireland and the EU member Ireland.
3,700 dead in the Northern Ireland conflict
The Northern Ireland conflict lasted for decades, more than 3,700 people died. The Good Friday Agreement ended the conflict in 1998. Nevertheless, there are always disputes between Catholics and Protestants.
Catholic nationalists seek union with Ireland, and Protestant unionists want to continue to belong to Britain. The "New IRA" has repeatedly carried out attacks in recent years. She rejects the peace agreement.