• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

British PM condemns N. Ireland attacks

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

London, March 8, IRNA - The British prime minister has condemned an attack on an army base in Northern Ireland which killed two soldiers in the former conflict zone.

Four other people were also injured when gunmen struck at Massereene army base in County Antrim, north of Belfast, on Saturday night.
The attacks were widely carried by the British media and hit the headlines on Sunday.

Gordon Brown described the attack as "evil" and said "no murderer" would derail the peace process.

No one has said they carried out the attack, but according to BBC, it is thought to be the work of dissident republicans opposed to the peace process.
The soldiers are the first to be murdered in Northern Ireland since Lance Bombardier Stephen Restorick was killed by an IRA sniper in 1997.

"I think the whole country is shocked and outraged at the evil and cowardly attacks on soldiers serving their country. We will do everything in our power to make sure that Northern Ireland is safe and secure and I assure you we will bring these murderers to justice,” Brown told the BBC.

"No murderer will be able to derail a peace process that has the support of the great majority of Northern Ireland."

Northern Ireland Secretary Shaun Woodward condemned the shootings as "an act of criminal barbarism".

It happened just 36 hours after Northern Ireland Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde confirmed that undercover soldiers had been called in to carry out surveillance operations amid warnings that the threat against his officers and military personnel was at its highest for almost a decade.

Irish prime minister Brian Cowen said the attack would not be allowed to undermine power-sharing and peace in Northern Ireland.

"A tiny group of evil people cannot and will not undermine the will of the people of Ireland to live in peace together," said Cowan.

Last year dissident Republicans tried to kill Police Service of Northern Ireland officers in separate incidents in Derry City and Dungannon Co Tyrone. Last month, security forces also defused a 300lb bomb in Castlewellan Co Down which may have been intended for an attack on a nearby barracks.