A dangerous dissident republican group, the New IRA, said to have links to Iran and Hezbollah, claimed responsibility for a car bomb outside a police station in Belfast on Tuesday before warning of further attacks, reports show.
The blast targeted a Northern Ireland police station in Dunmurry, and police increased patrols after the group threatened to attack officers at their homes.
A 66-year-old man was also arrested under terrorism laws on Tuesday following the explosion. Reuters reported.
In a statement attributed to the ‘IRA leadership’, the group said the bomb was intended to kill officers leaving the station. It warned that anyone cooperating with police “will be dealt with severely.”
LAWMAKER SAYS IRAN TARGETED HIM IN PHISHING ATTACK DISGUISED AS A TV INTERVIEW
Forensic investigators inspect the site of a car bomb that exploded outside Dunmurry police station in South Belfast, Northern Ireland. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)
A 2020 report from The timesciting information from an MI5 informant, alleged links between the New IRA, Lebanon-based Hezbollah and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
According to the report, individuals associated with the group signed a book of condolence following the 2020 killing of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in a US drone strike in Baghdad, raising concerns about possible external support, including weapons and financing.
TRUMP CONFIRMED AS EXPLOSIVE REPORT CONFIRMS IRAN SURVEILLANCE HOUTHI ‘POLITICAL AND MILITARY AFFAIRS’
The European Union designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps as a terrorist organization, and Ursula von der Leyen promised swift implementation after a violent crackdown. (Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto)
“This will unite Russia, Iran, China, North Korea and a growing group of non-state actors into a functioning logistics and trade network around the world,” Badger said.
“What we are seeing is the maturation of a hybrid model of war, developed and led by Russia and Iran, in which opponents of the Western-led order increasingly share tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs) across geographies and ideologies,” says Badger, the co-author of “The big heist.“
The latest New IRA bombing also follows a similar attempted car bomb attack on another police station outside Belfast several weeks ago. It is one of several militant groups opposing the 1998 Good Friday Agreement and seeking to end British rule in Northern Ireland and establish a united Ireland.
BRITAIN IS ON THE DESIGNATION OF IRGC TERROR AS THE IRAN-LINKED CENTER SELLS ACCUSED EXTREMIST GOODS
The New IRA, linked to Iran and Hezbollah, claimed responsibility for a car bomb outside a police station in Belfast on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)
In recent years, the country has seen a series of attacks on police and security forces.
“The real challenge for Ireland’s local police and security services is that these groups are now strengthening each other’s learning process,” Badger added.
“A tactic tested in one theater could be in the hands of a dissident cell in another theater within months, and Western counter-terrorism structures are simply not equipped to detect that kind of cross-pollination,” he said.
“A Lebanese Shia militia training a far-left Irish republican faction would have looked exotic a decade ago.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
“Today it is consistent with a broader pipeline, including Russian sabotage cells using local criminal proxies in Europe and Iranian-directed assassination plots on British and American soil.
“The playbook of these actors – proxies, dual-use logistics, pipelines for weapons and finance, exploitation of grievance movements in the target country – appears to be converging,” Badger added.
