Man held over MI5 base car bomb
A man has been arrested in connection with a car bomb which exploded outside the Army base which houses MI5’s Northern Ireland headquarters.
The bomb went off at about 0020 BST on Monday as the surrounding area was being evacuated outside Palace Barracks, in Holywood, County Down.
It came on the day that David Ford was chosen as the first local politician since 1972 to be NI’s Justice Minister.
The 30-year-old was arrested in the Ardoyne area of north Belfast.
He is being questioned at Antrim Police Station.
An elderly man who was walking near the barracks at the time was treated for minor injuries.
The bomb was placed in a taxi, which had been hijacked in the Ligoniel area of north Belfast, about seven miles from Holywood, at about 2150 BST.
The driver was held hostage by three men for about two hours before being told to drive his taxi to the barracks.
The vehicle was abandoned at the base just before midnight prompting police and security staff to evacuate the area. The bomb exploded about 20 minutes later as the evacuation was still taking place.
