The granting of bail in London to the young Dublin woman, Ms Elaine Moore, accused of possession of explosives and conspiracy to cause explosions, was widely welcomed yesterday.
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, said the Government "is pleased that her bail application was successful". Ms Moore's case - and that of the three Irishmen facing similar charges - had been monitored closely through the Irish Embassy, he said.
The former Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Peter Barry, who pledged £50,000, said: "I would prefer if she was released altogether. The idea of a young girl like that in prison, in isolation, with those charges laid against her - there is no case against her.
"I just thought it was so ludicrous when the I read the initial reports of her case." He had contacted his party colleague and Fine Gael MEP, Ms Mary Banotti, "to ask her if the situation was as ridiculous as it seemed and she said it was".
Ms Moore is expected to be released on Tuesday when the £190,000 in sureties has been posted. Ms Banotti, who spoke for Ms Moore at the bail proceedings in the Old Bailey, also pledged £20,000 towards her bail. The former presidential candidate knows her mother, who stood for Fine Gael in the local elections in 1991. Both Ms Cathy Moore and her daughter had canvassed for her in various elections.
Ms Banotti spoke to the young woman by phone yesterday afternoon. "She is in great form and now that she knows she will be out in a few days she can cope with the situation."
Ms Banotti said her lawyers had given her books to keep her occupied while she remains in the all-male security detention prison at Milton Keynes, where she is in isolation. "She said she is overwhelmed by the support she has received even from people she does not know."
Ms Moore's own family pledged £50,000 towards the bail and her mother said: "I am absolutely delighted. I cannot even explain the relief I feel."
Telephoned at her home in Dublin with news of the bail, Ms Moore said: "Elaine was on the phone before she went to court and was very optimistic."
Ms Moore added: "She hasn't been cleared yet, and I have no doubt at this stage that she will never go to trial because there just isn't any evidence against her."
Speaking on RTE radio's lunchtime news, Ms Moore said she was not shocked at the amount of money required. She said her daughter was optimistic that she would be released. A friend of Ms Moore, Mr Rory Heary, spoke of his arrest in London on the day she was detained, July 10th.
On RTE's Pat Kenny programme, Mr Heary, who is from Co Armagh, said he was stopped in his car with a friend on the way home from work in Euston during rush-hour traffic. He was spreadeagled against the car by about a dozen police.
"I was handcuffed and a few moments later I was put into a white boiler suit, and my hands and feet were bagged. I was left in the road in front of everyone," Mr Heary said.
A tourist took a video of the scene and this was given to television and newspapers. Friends in Ireland and even one in Australia saw him on the news.
He was taken to Charing Cross police station and questioned about explosives. He was fingerprinted and allowed to make a phone call at 3.40 a.m., 10 hours after he was detained. He was released later without charge.