IRA splinter group behind blast in London?

By Thomas Abraham

LONDON, JUNE 2. Fears of a bombing campaign by dissident Irish Republican Army (IRA) members opposed to the Northern Ireland peace agreement have grown after a bomb exploded under the Hammersmith bridge in west London.

No one was injured in the blast but it led to warnings that the IRA splinter groups might step up such attacks to discredit the peace process in Ulster. Two IRA splinter groups had earlier carried out such bomb attacks in Northern Ireland - the Real IRA, which was formed in 1997 by breakaway IRA men protesting against the decision by the Provisionals to join the peace talks and the Continuity IRA, which was formed in 1986 after a split in Sinn Fein, the IRA's political wing.

The attack came as Northern Ireland's power-sharing Government met for the first time after it had been suspended by the British Government in February. The provincial Government has two Sinn Fein Ministers and dissident Irish Republicans view Sinn Fein's participation in the Government as a betrayal of the Irish nationalist cause.

The Real IRA, which is believed to have around 120 members and access to explosives and arms, was responsible for the bombing of a market place in the town of Omagh in Northern Ireland two years ago. The group has since then been on a ceasefire. Police in London said they were keeping an open mind on who was responsible for yesterday's blast. A senior official form Scotland Yard's anti-terrorism branch said he was ``not going to speculate'' but that terrorists ``would be a line of enquiry.''

The other possible suspect, the Continuity IRA, has not declared a ceaefire and is believed to be responsible for an attack in February on a hotel in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. Analysts say that the line between these two groups is often blurred and that they often claim responsibility for the other's act.

Yesterday's blast shattered the windows in nearby buildings but no one was hurt. This was the second attack in four years on the bridge by Irish Republicans. In 1996, police discovered two Semtex bombs which would have destroyed the bridge had they exploded. This was the first attack carried out by dissident Irish Republicans in recent times on the British mainland though they have carried out a series of attacks in Northern Ireland. There have been several unsuccesful attempts to bomb army barracks and bases in that province over the past few months. It is feared that the dissidents may now concentrate their efforts on carrying out a bomb attack in a major British city, where security would be less tight than in Northern Ireland. The political impact of such an attack in mainland Britain would also be far greater than in Northern Ireland.

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