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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Man injured in east Belfast bomb blast | Man injured in east Belfast bomb blast |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| A man thought to be a prison officer has been injured in an explosion in east Belfast. | A man thought to be a prison officer has been injured in an explosion in east Belfast. |
| The Police Service of Northern Ireland said the blast happened at about 7.10am, going off underneath the van he was driving in the loyalist Woodstock Road area. | |
| Supt Darrin Jones said: “At this time we believe a device has exploded under a vehicle … One man has been taken to hospital.” His injuries were not thought to be life-threatening. | |
| The device exploded close to the entrance of Euston Street primary school, whose Woodstock Road entrance has been closed as forensic officers search the area. | The device exploded close to the entrance of Euston Street primary school, whose Woodstock Road entrance has been closed as forensic officers search the area. |
| Suspicion will fall on dissident republican terror groups who have in recent years targeted prison officers. | Suspicion will fall on dissident republican terror groups who have in recent years targeted prison officers. |
| In November 2011, the New IRA murdered David Black, 52, a prison officer shot dead in an ambush on the M1 between Lurgan and Portadown. The father of two was killed on his way to work at the top security Maghaberry prison, outside Belfast. He was the first prison officer to be killed by paramilitaries in 20 years. | In November 2011, the New IRA murdered David Black, 52, a prison officer shot dead in an ambush on the M1 between Lurgan and Portadown. The father of two was killed on his way to work at the top security Maghaberry prison, outside Belfast. He was the first prison officer to be killed by paramilitaries in 20 years. |
| Dissident republican prisoners have been involved in long-running disputes with the Maghaberry prison authorities over demands to be separated from other inmates and be treated as political prisoners. | Dissident republican prisoners have been involved in long-running disputes with the Maghaberry prison authorities over demands to be separated from other inmates and be treated as political prisoners. |
| Northern Ireland’s first minister condemned those responsible for the attack on Friday morning. | Northern Ireland’s first minister condemned those responsible for the attack on Friday morning. |
| Arlene Foster said she told the deputy chief constable of the PSNI that “we stand behind him” in the face of this “disgraceful and despicable attack”. | Arlene Foster said she told the deputy chief constable of the PSNI that “we stand behind him” in the face of this “disgraceful and despicable attack”. |
| Martin McGuinness, the Sinn Féin deputy first minister of Northern Ireland, also condemned those behind the attack. McGuinness described the attack on Twitter as a “despicable and futile act”, adding that his thoughts and prayers were with the man’s family. | |
| Meanwhile the Northern Ireland secretary, Theresa Villiers, urged anyone with information about the murder bid to contact the police. | |
| Chris Lyttle, member of the Northern Ireland assembly for Belfast East, described the attack as “a sickening echo of the past”. | |
| The Ulster Unionist party councillor Chris McGimpsey also condemned the attack and said it was a “worrying development”. | The Ulster Unionist party councillor Chris McGimpsey also condemned the attack and said it was a “worrying development”. |