Sinn Féin has described the arrest of an IRA suspect accused of a bombing as "petty, vindictive and unnecessary", writes Dan Keenan, Northern News Editor.
Michael Gerard Rogan (44) was arrested on Monday in the holiday resort of Playa de Las Americas in Tenerife and is expected to face extradition proceedings in court in Madrid.
He is accused of conspiring with others to cause an explosion at the British army's Thiepval barracks, Lisburn, Co Antrim, in October 1996 in which one soldier died and 31 others were injured.
He was remanded until November 20th that year but did not appear in court.
The bombing of Thiepval barracks, the British army headquarters in Northern Ireland, occurred after the collapse of the IRA's first cessation and was thought to have placed in peril the loyalist ceasefire.
Yesterday Mr Martin McGuinness said Mr Rogan was an "exile" who should be freed and allowed to return to his north Belfast home.
"It should be borne in mind, not least by the British authorities, that people like this need to be treated with a particular sensitivity," Mr McGuinness said.
"People like this offer no threat to the political process, many of them are strong supporters of the peace process and many of them will benefit from the British government introducing the necessary legislation required to resolve their difficulties."
Mr McGuinness would not be drawn on whether Mr Rogan was on the list of "On The Run" (OTR) fugitives Sinn Féin wants to see allowed back to Ireland without fear of jail.
He said the OTRs were in an "anomalous position" whose "difficulties need to be resolved".
Mr McGuinness said Mr Rogan had been "exiled from his home for a number of years" and was arrested on foot of British warrant while on holiday.
However, the DUP welcomed the arrest and called for Mr Rogan to "face justice".
Mr Jeffrey Donaldson, the Lagan Valley MP who represents Lisburn, said: "The victims of that 1996 attack will, I'm sure, be glad that the man who failed to appear in court may now face justice. Those who seek to evade the law must know that they can run but they cannot hide forever.
"The hard work of and co-operation between British, Irish and Spanish police forces has paid off and I hope that the Spanish authorities move to swiftly extradite Mr Rogan."
The IRA detonated two bombs at Thiepval barracks within minutes of each other, injuring many who ran to help those caught in the first explosion.
The incident followed the breakdown of the IRA cessation and the bombing of docklands in London in February 1996 in which two men died.