Catholic Police officer dead after booby-trap bomb explodes under car in Omagh - 2 men arrested

Bomb explodes under car in Omagh
By Brian Hutton, PA
Saturday, 2 April 2011SHARE PRINTEMAILTEXT SIZE NORMALLARGEEXTRA LARGE
A police officer is understood to have been caught up in a booby trap car bomb in Northern Ireland.

The device exploded under the vehicle outside his home in Highfield Close, off the Gortin Road, in Omagh, Co Tyrone, just before 4pm today.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland was unable to immediately confirmed if there were any casualties.

Adams condemns Omagh bomb attack

April 2, 2011

Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams TD has condemned those responsible for today's bomb attack in Omagh.


Speaking this afternoon Mr Adams said;

"Firstly I want to condenmn what happened in Omagh this afternoon.


While not all of the infromation has yet come to light in relation to this incident it is understood that a young man has lost his life. I want to send my condolences to his family at this hugely traumatic time.

Sinn Féin is determined that those responsible will not set back the progress of the Peace and Political Process'." CRÍOCH

Policeman critically injured in Omagh car bomb

A police officer is in a critical condition after a bomb exploded under his car in Omagh, County Tyrone.

The device exploded under the vehicle outside his home in Highfield Close, off the Gortin Road, just before 1600 BST on Saturday.

It is not clear if there have been any other casualties.

Since 2007, dissidents republican have planted dozens of booby-trap bombs under the private cars of police officers.

The bombs usually fail to detonate and have killed nobody.

But two policemen have lost their legs in attacks in May 2008 and January 2010.

Bomb Explodes Underneath Police Officer's Car

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A new recruit to the Police Service of Northern Ireland is understood to have been caught up in a booby trap car bomb in Omagh, Co Tyrone.


The device exploded under the vehicle outside the officer's home in Highfield Close, off the Gortin Road, just before 4pm.
Sky's Northern Ireland correspondent Vicki Hawthorne said: "Police have confirmed that some kind of device exploded underneath the car.
"They say the vehicle belongs to a new recruit of the Police Service of Northern Ireland and that he is a Catholic officer.
"There are reports that the officer has been injured, but there has been no official confirmation so far."
Over the past year and a half there have been several similar incidents targeting the Police Service of Northern Ireland.
Hawthorne said: "Some have failed to detonate but in January last year, a serving police officer lost both his legs in an explosion."
She added: "The finger will be pointing towards dissident Republican terrorists who are trying to derail the political process in Northern Ireland and hoping to discourage young Catholics from joining the police service."

@EamonnMallie

The young PSNI who was was targeted in this afternoon's under vehicle attack was a catholic. He reportedly served in Fermanagh.
35 minutes ago via Twitter for iPhone

Police officer 'killed after being targeted by booby trap car bombers outside his home in Omagh'
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 5:47 PM on 2nd April 2011

A police officer is understood to have been caught up in a booby trap car bomb in Northern Ireland.
The device exploded under the vehicle outside his home in Highfield Close, off the Gortin Road, in Omagh, Co Tyrone, just before 4pm today.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland was unable to immediately confirm if there were any casualties.



Booby trap: The car bomb is understood to have detonated under a vehicle and critically injured a police officer in Highfield Close, around two miles outside Omagh

It has been suggested a Catholic police officer was targeted in the attack, with UTV's news editor Chris Hagan posting on Twitter that the policeman was believed to be in a critical condition.
Local reports indicate the officer may have been targeted specifically, with the blast occurring on a residential road away from the centre of Omagh.
Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams TD has condemned the purpetrators of today's bomb attack.
'Firstly I want to condemn what happened in Omagh this afternoon,' he said.
'While not all of the information has yet come to light in relation to this incident it is understood that a young man has lost his life. I want to send my condolences to his family at this hugely traumatic time.
'Sinn Féin is determined that those responsible will not set back the progress of the Peace and Political Process.'
Last week an explosive device of 'substantial size' was discovered in Londonderry, with local MP Gregory Campbell calling the incident a 'disturbing throwback to the past'.

Car bomb: An explosive device detonated under a vehicle in Omagh, with reports suggesting a Catholic police officer was targeted
The blast comes 13 years after 29 people were killed and 220 injured after the Real IRA planted a car bomb in central Omagh.
In October last year the Real IRA claimed responsibility for bombing a street in Londonderry in the early hours of the morning, though no-one was hurt in the explosion.
Northern Ireland Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness accused the dissident republicans of attempting to drag the city back to its violent past.
Last August the head of the Northern Ireland's police service warned that the Omagh bomb tragedy could be repeated in light of heightened threat from dissident republicans.
PSNI chief constable, Matt Baggott, said dissident republicans who planted a bomb in Lurgan, Co. Armagh days before the 12th anniversary of the Omagh tragedy, 'are the same people, or the same mindset that ultimately led to the Omagh tragedy', adding that they were becoming increasingly 'reckless'.
'They have no solution for the future, only to go back to the past. And they are bringing that recklessness increasingly to our streets,' he said.
'We need the public to fully support us and not allow these people to do what they want to do.'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1372698/Police-officer-injured-car-bomb-detonates-Omagh.html#ixzz1INxa88M4

Catholic policeman killed in Omagh car bomb

A Catholic police officer was killed by a car bomb at his home in Omagh, County Tyrone, it is reported.
By David Harrison 5:04PM BST 02 Apr 2011

The device exploded under the vehicle outside his home in Highfield Close, off the Gortin Road, in Omagh, Co Tyrone, just before 4pm today.
Jeffrey Donaldson, the Democratic Unionist MP for Lagan Valley, said the police officer was targeted because he was a Catholic member of the Police Service of Northern Ireland.

He said: "He was killed because he represents the kind of progress that has been made in Northern Ireland. These people want to kill, they want to drag Northern Ireland back to the dark ages."

The PSNI was unable to immediately confirm details of any casualties.

Other politicians also condemned those responsible for the bomb attack.

Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams said his thoughts were with the family of the police officer at this traumatic time.
"Sinn Fein is determined that those responsible will not set back the progress of the peace and political process."
SDLP chairman Joe Byrne said it was a brutal attack.

"Violence is never acceptable. The people of Omagh are stunned at the minute," he added.

Meanwhile, Traditional Unionist Voice leader Jim Allister said the attack underscored the depth of the continuing threat from terrorists.
Today's blast comes 13 years after 29 people were killed and 220 injured after the Real IRA planted a car bomb in central Omagh.

Since 2007, dissidents republican have planted dozens of booby-trap bombs under the private cars of police officers. The bombs usually fail to detonate and have killed nobody.

But two policemen have lost their legs in attacks in May 2008 and January 2010.

In March 2009, a police officer was shot dead as he answered a distress call in Craigavon, County Armagh. Dissident republicans, the Continuity IRA, claimed responsibility for that attack. Constable Stephen Carroll, 48, was married and from Banbridge. He was murdered two days after the Real IRA shot dead two soldiers outside Massereene Barracks in Antrim.

@SneedHearn

The young PSNI officer murdered today near Omagh had apparently only been 3 weeks in the job... What cause is advanced here?
5 minutes ago via Tweetie for Mac

PSNI officer killed in Omagh car bomb
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A newly-recruited PSNI officer has been killed in an under-car bomb attack in Omagh, Co Tyrone.
At this stage, police have confirmed a 25-year-old man died when the booby trap device exploded in the Highfield Close area of Killyclougher on Saturday afternoon.

Residents reported hearing a loud blast as the bomb went off.

Police remain at the scene.

Young PSNI officer killed by bomb in Omagh. He had completed his training just three weeks ago.
UTV's Political Editor Ken Reid on Twitter (@KenReid)
Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams said: "I want to condenm what happened in Omagh this afternoon."

"I want to send my condolences to his family at this hugely traumatic time.

"Sinn Féin is determined that those responsible will not set back the progress of the Peace and Political Process"

Ulster Unionist leader Tom Elliott has condemned "the evil and cowardly attack".

"The callous murder of this young officer will come as a great shock to the local community and my thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends and colleagues at this time."

PSNI Chief Constable Matt Baggott is holding crisis talks at police headquarters in Belfast after the bombing.

@ EamonnMallie

PSNI confirming 25 year old officer killed in under vehicle bomb attack outside Omagh.
5 minutes ago via Twitter for iPhone

@webtwozero
a search on twitter reveals only anger towards the killing of the psni officer. a search on facebook shows a small element of support
1 minute ago via Twitter for Mac

AnnaEsse wrote:Thanks carmen. That's sad and shocking. A young man just finished training and just getting into the job.

carmen wrote:

AnnaEsse wrote:Thanks carmen. That's sad and shocking. A young man just finished training and just getting into the job.

It's horrifying - and very disturbing about the 'small element of support' on Facebook.

AnnaEsse wrote:

carmen wrote:

AnnaEsse wrote:Thanks carmen. That's sad and shocking. A young man just finished training and just getting into the job.

It's horrifying - and very disturbing about the 'small element of support' on Facebook.

I noticed that and hoped it didn't mean there were people who supported the killers.

a search on twitter reveals only anger towards the killing of the psni officer. a search on facebook shows a small element of support

Omagh booby-trap bomb kills policeman
Terrorism returns to scene of worst atrocity during the Troubles as blast kills officer preparing to drive to work

Henry McDonald , Ireland correspondent
guardian.co.uk, Saturday 2 April 2011 18.18 BST
Article history



An officer from the Police Service of Northern Ireland stands near the scene where a 25-year-old police officer was killed after a bomb exploded under his car in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Photograph: Paul McErlane/EPA
Deadly terrorism returned to the scene of the worst atrocity of the Northern Ireland Troubles when a booby-trap car bomb exploded in Omagh.

One police officer was confirmed killed in the blast underneath a car in Highfield Close in the Co Tyrone town. The officer, a local Catholic named as Ronan Kerr, had been preparing to drive to work in the local Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) station. The bomb exploded shortly before 4pm, close to a Gaelic sports club in a new housing development off the Gortin Road, near the town centre.

Suspicion for this latest bomb attack will now fall on one of three republican dissident terror groups that have resumed their violent campaigns in the north of Ireland over recent weeks.

The attack in Omagh will conjure up memories of August 1998 when a Real IRA car bomb exploded in the centre of the market town. Twenty-nine men, women and children died in the bombing, as well two unborn children. It was the single biggest loss of life during 35 years of conflict.

No one was ever convicted of direct involvement in the atrocity, although some of the families of Omagh's victims later took a landmark civil action against a number of men they claimed were leading figures in the Real IRA – one of the three dissident groups considered most likely to have carried out the bombing.

The alleged Real IRA leaders are currently appealing against a high court ruling that they must pay compensation to the victims of the Omagh bombing.

The Omagh bomb also resulted in a damning police ombudsman report criticising the Royal Ulster Constabulary's handling of intelligence material prior to the Real IRA attack.

The atrocity came just five months after the Good Friday peace agreement was signed. Although a faction of the Real IRA declared a ceasefire, militants broke away and formed terror units, including Óglaigh na hÉireann (ONH). The group has attracted a number of former Provisional IRA bombers. Last year it detonated a bomb underneath the car of Catholic PSNI officer Peadar Heffron, who lost his legs in the blast.

The death of the officer in Omagh brings to two the number of PSNI members who have been killed by terrorists since the police service underwent radical reforms in Northern Ireland. One of the dissidents' main strategies is to target Catholic recruits to the police service in order to deter nationalists from joining the security forces.

The same tactic was used by the Provisional IRA from the start of the Troubles in 1969 when the Provisionals targeted Catholic recruits to the now defunct RUC and the local military force, the Ulster Defence Regiment.

@BelfastMurf
My thoughts are with the family of PC Kerr, murdered in Omagh today. If hoods think they can bomb us back to the troubles, they are wrong.
1 minute ago via Twitter for iPhone

LATEST: 08:42
Hero killed by cowards
Sunday, 3 April 2011


TARGET: Ronan Kerr was killed on Saturday in a car bomb attack

This is the hero son senselessly murdered by dissident republicans because he was a Catholic policeman.

Rookie Ronan Kerr only graduated from police training college three weeks ago and was setting off to duty when a car bomb ripped through his car and killed him in Omagh, the town that suffered the biggest atrocity of the Troubles.

The blast happened at his home in Highfield Close, off the Gortin Road in the Co Tyrone town, just before 4pm yesterday when Ronan was heading off to work night shift in Enniskillen.

Neighbours rushed to try and help the tragic 25-year-old after hearing the explosion, but his car burst into flames and he was trapped in the vehicle.

Eyewitnesses told how neighbours desperately fought to put the fire out before tending to the injured policeman.



Read more: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sunday-life/hero-killed-by-cowards-15135587.html#ixzz1IS5dDeR3

3 April 2011 Last updated at 13:50 Share this pageEmailPrint

PSNI Chief Constable appeals for Omagh car bomb help


Constable Ronan Kerr was killed when a booby trap device exploded

Police have appealed for information after the murder of a Catholic police officer on Saturday night.

Constable Ronan Kerr, 25, was killed after a booby-trap device exploded under his car, in Omagh, County Tyrone.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but it has been blamed on dissident republicans.

In a press conference on Sunday, NI Chief Constable, Matt Baggott, said the attack was carried out by a "potent and dangerous minority".

Chief Constable, Baggott, said they needed to speak to residents in the Highfield area of Omagh, where the bomb exploded.

"We need to know what they saw and what they heard over the past few days."

Constable Kerr was the second policeman to be killed since the Police Service of Northern Ireland was formed out of the Royal Ulster Constabulary in 2001.

At the press conference, Chief Constable Baggott, said it may be some time before residents would be allowed back into their homes.

Scared

"We apologise for that, but I'm sure they will understand the need for us to conduct the most professional and comprehensive investigation into Ronan's murder," he said.

"We also want to talk to anyone who saw or spoke to Ronan since last Friday, especially if he was in his car, a black Ford Mondeo, registration number PNZ 1114. We really do need to talk to you.

Continue reading the main story
Analysis


Mark Simpson
BBC Ireland Correspondent
Dissident republicans are trying to de-stabilise Northern Ireland at a time when it has rarely been more stable.

Power-sharing is working. The Stormont Assembly has just completed its first full four-year term for 30 years.

Relations between Britain and Ireland have never been better. This summer, the Queen will make an historic first visit to Dublin, demonstrating how relations on these islands have normalised.

Violent republican groups like the Real IRA and Oglaigh na hEireann are fighting against normality.

Reaction to policeman's murder
"There are people living in this community who have information which is absolutely vital to this investigation. Please come forward," he continued.

"We understand there will be some people who might be scared and maybe do not want to talk to police. You can give information anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

"But our preference is for you to talk to us directly, whether you live in the Highfield area or whether you have information about Ronan's movements last Friday and Saturday."

Dissidents
At the press conference, Northern Ireland Justice Minister, David Ford, described it a "callous, calculated and cowardly act".

"The entire community is united in their revulsion and condemnation," he said.

"Terrorists stand against the people of Northern Ireland. They offer us nothing.

"We must come together now to ensure that Northern Ireland has the shared future it so richly deserves."



Click to play

Chief Constable Matt Baggott: "We've had a Good Friday Agreement, but it's time we had an Easter here"
Constable Kerr joined the police in May 2010, and had been working in the community since December. Prayers were said for him at vigil masses throughout Omagh on Saturday night.

About 2,000 people, who were taking part in the Omagh half marathon, had passed the nearby entrance to the estate just hours before the blast in Highfield Close.

Since 2007, dissident republicans have planted several booby-trap bombs under the private cars of police officers.

Most bombs have failed to detonate, but in January 2010 Constable Peadar Heffron, 33, was injured when a bomb exploded under his car. He later lost his leg. Dissident republicans had been blamed for the attack

In March 2009, a police officer was shot dead as he answered a distress call in Craigavon, County Armagh.

PSNI Constable Ronan Kerr's brother pays tribute to him



Cathair Kerr said his brother Ronan was 'the best brother anyone could wish for'

The 25-year-old police officer was killed in a bomb attack in Omagh on Saturday.

Cathair Kerr posted the message on the micro-blogging website Twitter on Sunday morning.

The message read: "Ronan Kerr - Rest in Peace my beloved brother. The best brother anyone could wish for. I hope dad is there to meet you at heavens gates :(."

Constable Kerr's identity had been withheld until his brother, who was en route from Australia at the time of his death, could be informed.

Friends and colleagues have also been paying tribute to Constable Kerr.

Parish priest Father Arthur McInerny new Ronan Kerr well.

"Ronan was a particularly fine young man," he said.

"He wanted to do something worthwhile and to help people. He was very good with people. He'd see no wrong in anyone, that's the sort of person he was."

A police colleague of Constable Kerr, who was working with him on Thursday, described him as "social, civil and respectable".

"He was the best probationer I'd ever worked with. He was very well liked and his colleagues are just in shock," the officer said.