THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The Queen is making a four-day visit to Ireland, the first by a British monarch in 100 years, in the shadow of threats by dissident republicans.
Showing posts with label Queen's visit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Queen's visit. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Irish army forced to make safe a viable bomb found on bus near Dublin on eve of historic royal visitA bomb has been found near Dublin as the Queen is due to arrive inIreland for a historic visit that has been hailed as an "extraordinary moment" in the country's history.
The Irish army was forced to make safe a viable improvised explosive device found on a bus in County Kildare late on Monday night.
The discovery threatens to overshadow the Queen's four-day visit, the first by a British monarch to the Republic of Ireland, although the Foreign Office has said she will still travel to Dublin on Tuesday.
An unprecedented security operation, costing about €30m (£26.2m), is in place to safeguard the Queen and Prince Phillip. It includes land, air and sea patrols and a "ring of steel" around the centre of the Irish capital, where the main thoroughfare, O'Connell Street, has been closed to traffic.
The bomb was discovered in the luggage compartment of the vehicle at a bus stop on the outskirts of Maynooth. An engineering unit from the Irish Defence Forces arrived at 11.10pm after receiving a request from the Garda Síochána.
An Irish military spokesman said a controlled explosion was carried out close to a hotel and the scene was declared safe at 1.55am. The remains of the device were handed over to the Gardai for investigation. » | Adam Gabbatt, Henry McDonald and agencies | Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Sunday, July 19, 2009
THE SUNDAY TIMES: THE Foreign Office is threatening to cancel a state visit by the Queen to Bermuda after a row with the island over its “unacceptable” decision to give sanctuary to four former inmates of Guantanamo Bay.
The boycott is being considered after Bermuda infuriated David Miliband, the foreign secretary, by allowing the four men, all Chinese Muslim Uighurs, to stay on what is an overseas British territory.
The move followed a secret deal struck between Washington and the Bermudans. It was carried out without consulting Britain or the island’s governor.
Miliband protested to Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, about the pact. He told her the move was “invalid” because it breached Bermuda’s constitution, under which the UK has control over the island’s foreign and security policy.
The Uighurs are Muslim separatists from Xinjiang province. They had fled to Afghanistan in 2001 to escape Chinese oppression and were detained after they went to Pakistan.
Their arrival in Bermuda last month sparked an angry response from Sir Richard Gozney, the island’s governor. He summoned Ewart Brown, the Bermudan prime minister, for a dressing down. >>> David Leppard | Sunday, July 19, 2009
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