Bomb defused outside pub in north Belfast
Bomb disposal experts have carried out a controlled explosion on a bomb planted outside a pub in north Belfast overnight.
The device was discovered outside the pub on York Road at around 2.30am following a telephone warning.
York Road and part of the Limestone Road were sealed off during the alert.
A number of items were removed from the scene for forensic examination.
The Alexandra Bar is a popular drinking hole among leading loyalist paramilitaries. This morning’s security alert at the pub came just a day after the Ulster Defence Association announced an indefinite extension of its ceasefire.
Bombs had also been planted at a prisoner’s aid centre opposite the Alexandra and at another nearby pub in recent weeks.
Security sources said today that they believed the bombs may have been planted by rogue loyalists angered by the policies of the UDA leadership.
