Parcel bomb found in Irish postal depot linked to London and Glasgow explosives

A improvised explosive device found in a postal depot in Ireland has been linked to a number of similar devices sent to Britain.

Irish police called bomb disposal experts to the postal sorting office in Limerick on Friday morning after the suspicious package was discovered.

Defence Forces later confirmed a ‘viable’ device had been found contained in a plastic envelope before being disarmed and handed over to police for further investigation.

The discovery comes just over two weeks after four explosive devices were sent to major transport hubs in London and the University of Glasgow.

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A group calling itself the IRA, known to police as the New IRA, claimed one parcel addressed to a British Army recruitment officer may not have been discovered yet.

But Irish Minister Charlie Flanagan said the item discovered in Limerick could be the fifth.

The packages that arrived at Waterloo railway station and offices at Heathrow and London City airports on March 5 and 6 were posted with Irish stamps and had Dublin as the return address.

The one found in Limerick had similar stamps, police said.

The stamps appeared to be those issued by the Irish postal service for Valentine’s Day 2018, featuring a heart motif and the words ‘Love Eire N’.

All packages were A4-sized white postal bags containing yellow Jiffy bags and appeared capable of igniting a small fire when opened.

Irish Prime Minster Leo Varadkar condemned the actions of those involved, and said there was ‘no justification’ for the incident ‘no matter what is happening in politics at the moment,’