A Splinter republican group, the "Continuity Army Council", is being blamed for the large car bomb attack on a Protestantowned hotel and marina at Lisbellaw, on the Erne, in Co Fermanagh. German, English and Scandinavian tourists had to flee from the Carrybridge Hotel after the car bomb was parked close to the wooden building at 9 p.m. on Thursday.
Hotel staff noticed the car still had its lights on after it was parked close to the back of the hotel. The hotel owner, Mr Colin Beattie, said immediately after the car bomb was left he received a warning call. "That simply said there was a massive car bomb in the car park and we should get the place emptied. They said: `This is for real'. They said that about three times."
Staff had cleared most of the hotel but some foreign visitors apparently misunderstood the warnings. One Swedish couple went to bed as the hotel was being cleared. They were found by RUC officers who went into the hotel to check that it had been fully cleared. The Swedish guest said he had heard staff shouting that there was a "bomb" but that the word meant nothing to him.
Like the other visitors, they had to wait for more than two hours in the open before alternative accommodation could be found.
The bomb was made safe by a British army ordnance unit which carried out two controlled explosions. These started a fire that is believed to have burnt out the car. Superficial damage was caused to the hotel.
The attack was condemned yesterday by most parties in the North. Sinn Fein, whose paramilitary wing, the IRA, called a ceasefire earlier this month said "those groups still engaged in armed actions should desist". The party said it was prepared to "speak to anyone who has concerns about the current situation".
Mr Peter Robinson, of the Democratic Unionist Party said the bomb was the work of the Provisional IRA. He called on the Northern Secretary, Dr Mo Mowlam, to restore security arrangements which she announced last week were to be relaxed as a result of the IRA ceasefire.
The Northern Ireland Security Minister, Mr Adam Ingram, said the British government "will not be deflected by futile and irresponsible acts of this sort from its objective of securing lasting peace and stability for all the people of Northern Ireland". The SDLP and Alliance parties also condemned the attack.
The Continuity Army Council (CAC) splinter group is said by gardai to be the paramilitary wing of the small political party, Republican Sinn Fein (RSF) although RSF denies this. There are concerns in the North that there will be further attacks by extreme splinter groups like the CAC and the Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF) as substantive talks at Stormont approach.