Overview
- Garda Special Detective Unit officers stopped a vehicle on the N2 south of Carrickmacross on Wednesday and found a fully assembled explosive device described by Commissioner Justin Kelly as "extremely significant."
- The Irish Defence Forces Explosive Ordnance Disposal team examined and made the device safe before it was removed for forensic analysis, though officials have not disclosed disposal or technical details.
- A woman in her mid-20s who was driving the car has been charged and appeared at a special sitting of Trim District Court, and a man in his 40s has also been charged and is being held as part of the ongoing investigation.
- Authorities say the stop was intelligence-led and have linked the seizure to dissident republican activity, with PSNI and UK ministers praising Garda action and offering operational cooperation.
- Security officials warn the case underlines a persistent threat from small dissident republican factions that rejected the 1998 peace deal and follows earlier car-bomb incidents in Northern Ireland this year, which has sharpened cross-border security focus.