Bomb is latest in Belfast Shankill violence

BELFAST, N. Ireland (Reuters) -- A bomb exploded in west Belfast, causing substantial damage to a Protestant centre but no injuries.

A spokeswoman for the Royal Ulster Constabulary said the device exploded about 2 a.m. (0100 GMT), damaging severely the offices of the Loyalist Prisoners' Aid in the Shankill Road, a Protestant enclave.

The office provides aid to members of the pro-British Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF) and Ulster Defence Association (UDA).

The spokeswoman said the scene had been declared safe but was being cordoned off.

Witnesses said the explosion appeared to have been very large and would almost certainly have caused loss of life if people had been in the building.

The Shankill Road has been at the centre of fighting between pro-British loyalist factions. with Protestant paramilitary groups waging a vicious internal feud that has killed three men in the past month.

The explosion followed a string of incidents in Belfast on Sunday.

A pipe bomb-type device was on waste ground at Boundary Way near Shankill Road around noon, police said. After it was made safe police took it away for further examination.

A number of people were evacuated from their homes during the security alert, which ended mid-afternoon.

Earlier on Sunday shots were fired at house in the York Road area. Three children and several adults were in the house when the shooting happened, but no one was injured.

On Sunday night, a pipe bomb and petrol bomb were thrown through the window of an unoccupied house in north Belfast. Again there were no injuries and the petrol device caused only minor injuries.

Copyright 2000 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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RUC
Northern Ireland Office
Ulster Democratic Party

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