Loyalist paramilitaries were today blamed for a pipe bomb attack on a pub in Northern Ireland.
Customers at the Whitecliff Inn, Whitehead, Co Antrim, escaped injury when the device failed to explode after it was thrown at the premises last night.
The attack follows a recent wave of sectarian pipe bombings in several parts of Northern Ireland, including a concerted campaign in the nearby town of Larne.
British army bomb disposal experts called to the scene at about 9.30 p.m. cleared the device from the front of the pub.
Mr Sean Neeson, leader of the Alliance Party, condemned the attack as an "act of madness" on a bar which caters for both sides of the religious divide.
"Whitehead has largely a Protestant population, but everybody has lived side by side over the years," he said.
The loyalist Ulster Defence Association has been accused of stoking up tensions in recent weeks through a campaign of attacks on Catholic homes, schools and churches in parts of Co Antrim and Co Derry.
And while Mr Neeson believed the latest bombing bid came from that side of the divide, he was uncertain about which grouping carried it out.
"I think it's a loyalist attack, but at this stage it's difficult to pinpoint who was responsible," he said.
Last week the Northern Ireland Assembly member for East Antrim tabled a motion for debate at Stormont on the sectarian attacks which have blighted Larne.
Following last night's attack, however, he stressed that other areas have been suffering.
"Right across the constituency has experienced very widespread attacks over recent months. I think this is part of a campaign that has been ongoing," he said.
"But the motivation behind this one I find hard to understand because it's a cross-community facility."
A RUC spokesman said a motive for the pipe bombing was being investigated.
PA