Northern Ireland Terror Attack Fears Rise Ahead Of Biden Visit

Authorities in Northern Ireland uncovered what could be evidence of a dissident plan for violence ahead of a visit by President Joe Biden, according to local reports.

Leaders, including Biden, are expected to gather in Northern Ireland this week to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, an accord which effectively put an end to a 30-year period of near-constant sectarian violence known as “the Troubles.”

But a dissident group, known as the New IRA, is reportedly suspected of putting together a terror plot to disrupt those plans.

The Belfast Telegraph reported the Police Service of Northern Ireland conducted searches in the city of Derry and cited a source who said a British Army Bomb squad was on the scene looking for parts that could be used to make a bomb.

“The belief is that the New IRA was planning some sort of attack to coincide with Biden’s visit, similar to the mortar attack on the cops in Strabane last November,” the source said.

The New IRA claimed responsibility for detonating a bomb next to a police patrol vehicle in the Northern Ireland town of Strabane in November. Two police officers were unharmed in the attack.

The White House confirmed last week that Biden would travel to the United Kingdom and Ireland from April 11-14. His first stop is planned for Belfast, Northern Ireland, from Tuesday through Wednesday. Biden is slated to deliver remarks on Wednesday.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden plans to “mark the tremendous progress since the signing of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement 25 years ago and to underscore the readiness of the United States to support Northern Ireland’s vast economic potential to the benefit of all communities.”

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Biden is expected to join British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for the festivities. Other high-profile political figures from around the world, including former President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary Clinton, are expected to visit Northern Ireland in the next couple of weeks, per The Telegraph.

MI5, the United Kingdom’s security agency, raised the terror threat level in Northern Ireland to “severe” at the end of March. This followed the shooting of Detective Chief Inspector John Caldwell in February, an attack that police blamed on the New IRA.

Authorities are particularly concerned about a potential attack on police in Londonderry on Easter Monday.

“There is very strong community intelligence specifically coming forward in respect of Monday’s events in Derry/Londonderry and a real concern that there may be attempts to draw police in to serious public disorder and to use that then as a platform to launch terrorist attacks on police as well,” Assistant Chief Constable Bobby Singleton warned during a press conference last week.