MI5 last week raised the terrorist threat level for Northern Ireland from 'substantial' to 'severe'. Credit: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images Europe p>Dissident Republicans plot attacks against police ahead of Joe Biden and Rishi Sunak's arrival in Northern Ireland to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, police warn.
At a public briefing on Thursday, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said it had «very reliable» evidence that police officers would be targeted in Londonderry on Easter Monday.
April 10 marks the anniversary of Good. The Friday Agreement, a peace agreement that led to power sharing in the province and ended the 30-year conflict known as The Troubles.
Mr. Biden, President of the United States, and Mr. Sunak, Prime Minister, will arrive Tuesday evening ahead of Wednesday's agreement commemorations.
Northern Ireland's largest police operation currently underway in a decade: more officers are sent to the front lines, and shifts work 12 hours.
Deputy Chief Constable Bobby Singleton warned at a press conference in Belfast: “There is a very strong public intelligence advocating specifically for the events of Monday in Derry/Londonderry and there is a real concern that there may be attempts to involve the police in serious public disorder and then exploit it. as a platform for launching terrorist attacks. the police too.”
Joe Biden and Rishi Sunak will arrive in Northern Ireland on Tuesday evening. Photo: Leon Neal/Getty Images Europe
Easter is always a busy period for police in Northern Ireland, with Republicans parading to commemorate the Easter Rising against British rule in 1916.
In recent months, however, there have been signs of a particularly escalating tension. Last week, MI5 upgraded the terrorist threat level for Northern Ireland from 'substantial' to 'severe', meaning an attack is considered 'highly likely'.
In February, there was an attempted assassination of senior John Caldwell. Detective, in Co Tyrone, the police are blaming the New IRA for the shootout.
On Thursday, Assistant Chief Constable Chris Todd dismissed suggestions that fears of an Easter Monday attack were linked to the arrival of Biden and the global media. According to him, «no such intelligence information» was seen to suggest that the anniversary is the motive for a conspiracy by Republican dissidents.
A former counterterrorism chief said it was «unusual» that Northern Ireland police were so outspoken about fears of a terrorist attack on officers on Easter Monday.
A source told The Telegraph: «If the police will say it publicly, it will mean that they are concerned about it. By posting it publicly, they will hope that it will trigger it and therefore make it less likely.
“If you get that kind of specific intelligence and report it before something happens, sometimes it has the impact you want because they will know the police are ready for it.” publicly available information not only alerts the public, it also alerts the bad guys that the police are watching. By making it public, you're washing it out and alarming the people who run it, and they'll think there's been a security breach.»
Mr. Sunak and Mr. Biden are expected to meet during their visits, though no major political talks are planned. Biden will travel to Ireland later Wednesday for a visit that will last until Saturday.
In Brief | Good Friday Agreement
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, and Bill and Hillary Clinton, former President and First Lady of the United States, will visit Northern Ireland to mark the anniversary in the next two weeks, with confirmation of visits by other political figures expected in the coming days .
Simon Byrne, Chief Constable of the PSNI, told a police council meeting at the Stormont Hotel: «We are now dealing with a serious terrorist threat, which means that an attack is very likely in Northern Ireland.»
“ Follows emphasize that these attacks continue to focus on police officers, both on and off duty, and their families. It will also include prison officers and military personnel.
“The style of attack that we are dealing with and trying to prevent is gun and bomb attacks on these people by a small number of determined dissident terrorists. This means that by working with our security partners, there is an increase in their intentions and opportunities to cause us serious harm in the next six months.”
In February, six police officers were attacked in Straban, and in March, a dissident Republican group warned that the officers and their families were now «legitimate targets».
A bomb was left in a car outside Londonderry police station in November.
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