A car bomb exploded outside the PSNI station in Dunmurry on the outskirts of south Belfast on Saturday night. The New IRA claimed responsibility to a newspaper, stating its goal was to kill police officers leaving the station.

PSNI body-camera footage captured an officer approaching the vehicle during evacuation moments before the blast. PSNI assistant chief constable Davy Beck announced an increase in high visibility policing to counter the dissident threat.

The incident followed a failed New IRA bomb attack in Lurgan over a month earlier. Senior PSNI officers noted the group remains a risk despite setbacks.

First Minister Michelle O’Neill condemned the attack during a joint press conference at Stormont with DUP leader Emma Little-Pengelly, PSNI chief constable Jon Boutcher, and policing board chair Brendan Mullan.

Sinn Féin representatives issued statements denouncing the violence. The three main unionist parties challenged Sinn Féin on its support for policing in response to the bombing.

PSNI and MI5 operations have led to arrests and charges against New IRA members, including three Derry men awaiting judgment over the 2019 killing of journalist Lyra McKee and others linked to a 2023 Derry event.

Four other men, three from Derry including suspected leader Thomas Ashe Mellon, face charges related to dissident activities. Currently, 14 people are held in Maghaberry Prison's dissident wing and five in Portlaoise.