British army ordnance officers were last night making safe unexploded mortar bombs after an attack, believed to have been carried out by dissident republicans, on the RUC station in the centre of Newry, Co Down.
The attack was the fifth attempt by the republicans dissidents using mortars against RUC or British army bases in the North since March. In all the attacks mortars have misfired and on each occasion the security forces reported that it was only due to luck there were no serious civilian injuries.
No injuries were caused by last evening's attack, even though it took place at a busy time when the streets around the station were filled with traffic.
The station is the one where nine RUC officers lost their lives in a Provisional IRA mortar attack in February 1982. In an attack on the same station in 1984 more than 40 civilians were injured when the mortar misfired.
Yesterday's attack occurred at 5 p.m. when a white transit van was driven into a car-park in Monaghan Street near the station.
A short time later there was an explosion and a device flew five yards and landed in the car-park.
The North's Political Development Minister, Mr Paul Murphy, condemned the attack as a "cold-blooded and utterly despicable attempt to murder members of the security forces".