Politicians have condemned the actions of an armed gang who staged an illegal road-block in Meigh, Co Armagh, last night.
PSNI officers who were on a routine patrol in the area observed the suspicious activity and pulled back to see what was happening.
The masked gang handed out leaflets warning people against co-operating with the police or with Sinn Féin.
It is suspected that dissident republicans trying to assert themselves in the predominantly nationalist village were behind the stunt.
Local Assembly member Dominic Bradley, of the nationalist Social Democratic and Labour Party, said the men were handing out propaganda leaflets to motorists.
“This was an attempt by this group to make themselves relevant,” he said.
“But most of the people in this area have no tolerance for that type of activity — they didn’t in the past and they certainly don’t now.”
The leaflets warned people not to co-operate with police on both sides of the border, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) and the Garda.
It also advised against people speaking with Sinn Féin or MI5 and carried threats against anti-social behaviour and drug-dealing, according to Mr Bradley.
“This is an unwelcome development and harks back to a time which most people here have moved on from and want to leave firmly in the past,” he said.
“I am confident that people in the area will not allow this type of activity, which was never welcome, to deter them from moving forward into a better future.
“I would ask anyone who has any information regarding this incident to convey it to the police without delay.”