Anti-terrorist police have warned there could be further bomb attacks before Christmas as they continue to question six men in connection with the 18-month dissident republican bombing campaign in Britain.
At the same time, anti-terrorist police and army bomb disposal units were continuing a "difficult" search of buildings at a disused pig farm in West Ardsley near Leeds. Acting on information from anti-terrorist police in London, the operation got under way on Thursday. Several controlled explosions were carried out at the site, including the destruction of a car.
As police warned that the threat from dissident republicans should not be underestimated, the discovery of forensic evidence obtained from a partially detonated car bomb planted in Birmingham two weeks ago - blamed on the "Real IRA" - is understood to have helped anti-terrorist police make a significant advance in their investigation.
The six men were arrested under the Terrorism Act in north London and Liverpool on Thursday. One of the men was being held at a police station in Liverpool but he was transferred to Paddington Green police station in London, where the other five men were being questioned. A detailed forensic examination of their homes was continuing yesterday.
The arrests are the first in the anti-terrorist investigation into seven bombing incidents in London and Birmingham since June last year which police believe were carried out by the "Real IRA". The men can be held without charge for 48 hours, after which police must apply to a magistrate to hold them for a further five days.
Residents living in 20 houses close to Hill Top Farm in Tingley, West Ardsley, were evacuated from their homes after police began their search on Thursday as army bomb-disposal units extended their operation. They were asked not to return to their homes until the area was made safe. A nearby infants school was closed for the day as a precaution.
The Assistant Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police, Mr Grahame Maxwell, described the operation at the farm as difficult but stressed the priority was to ensure the safety of the local community. "Acting on safety advice from the army bomb-disposal unit, some residents were evacuated from their houses and local roads were closed off," Mr Maxwell said. "No arrests have yet been made and searches will be continuing."