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Man arrested under terrorism act after bomb found on Irish border

The SDLP's Daniel McCrossan said locals were being 'absolutely tortured' by bomb alerts in the area

Vincent Wood
Sunday 08 September 2019 11:47 BST
Residents were evacuated from the Church View area of the border town
Residents were evacuated from the Church View area of the border town

Police in Northern Ireland have confirmed that a bomb was found following a security alert near the Irish border on Saturday morning.

The improvised explosive device (IED) was discovered in Strabane, Co Tyrone after being first spotted by local residents.

During the alert people who lived in the highly residential and built-up Church View area were evacuated from their homes as Army bomb experts investigated.

A man was arrested under the Terrorism Act in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The security alert stretched into the night as officers and military personnel worked to find munitions, forcing pensioners to evacuate their homes for their own safety.

Local Sinn Fein MP Orfhlaith Begley said: "This security alert in the Church View area of Strabane has brought nothing but disruption to the local community.

"People have had to leave their homes as a result of this security alert and have been severely inconvenienced.

"Those behind this alert have nothing to offer the people of Strabane and have no support."These actions need to end immediately.”

SDLP West Tyrone MLA Daniel McCrossan branded the alert a disgrace as it happened on Saturday - adding that residents were "being absolutley tortured" by bomb threats.

"There is no place for these criminals on the streets of our town. They need to get off our streets and get off the back of people living here.

"Thanks to the residents who discovered the device and the actions of police, we aren't dealing with a tragedy this morning.

"But those responsible must be flushed out of this community and they should face justice for their attempt to murder and maim our friends and neighbours.

"There is a duty on anyone who has any information about this to come forward to police as soon as possible.

"The people behind this will do it again, they will put the lives of people in our community at risk. We all have to take a stand and stop them."

(Additional reporting by PA)

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