GAA 'Bombing' Condemned

A northern policitican has strongly condemned those responsible for leaving pipe bombs at the Stiles Community Centre in Antrim where players from St Comgall's GAA club were training.

SDLP South Antrim MLA Thomas Burns said: "It is hard to get into the minds of the thugs who would do this sort of thing, but it cannot be excluded that the GAA use of the community centre motivated the attack.

"Logic is not their strong point so they may not have worked it out that they would then be hand in glove with the dissident republicans who tried to kill GAA player Peadar Heffron a week ago.

"Whatever they were trying to do, they put lives in danger and they are a threat to the peaceful society which almost everyone has now signed up for.

"The forthright condemnations from all political quarters are proof of that.

"We all need to help the police put both groups of thugs out of business before they create new tragedies," he said.

The PSNI said the attack took place at a community centre in the Stiles estate, from where two devices described as "crude" and "non-viable" have been recovered.

GAA players who were training at the community centre were escorted from the building during the alert by police, who believe the attack was sectarian.

The building was cordoned off for a time on Thursday night and Friday morning but the security alert is now at an end.

(BMcC/GK)