NI News In Brief

Omagh Bomb Alert Over

Two suspicious objects found in Omagh - which sparked an evacuation last night - have now been declared harmless. The find, on the Dublin Road in the County Tyrone town at about 5pm on Sunday forced the evacuation of a number of families. A large area outside the town was also cordoned off as the people living in about a dozen houses were asked to leave. Army technical officers carried out two controlled explosions at the scene. It was later declared safe. Police would not give details about what was found.

Libel Threat Follows 'Drunk' Allegations

Press reports that a Northern Ireland couple, Eamon and Antoinette McGuckin's children were put into care because they were allegedly drunk on holiday in Portugal recently may soon be the subject of libel actions. The Upperlands couple who later denied being drunk and said they would never put their children in any danger have engaged Belfast-based solicitor Paul Tweed, who has represented a number of Hollywood stars, has taken on the family's case. He said he would be taking "appropriate legal action against a number of newspapers and broadcasters over the coverage of the events they allege occurred in Portugal". See: Holiday Couple Defend Actions

Homes Attack: Man Arrested

One man has been held by police following a weekend attack on two houses that were damaged in an early morning incident in north Belfast's Twaddell Avenue area at about 6.30am on Sunday when the window of one house was smashed along with the window and wall of a second house. The 20-year-old man was arrested a short time later and was last night helping police with their inquiries.

Crossbow Shock

A man has been injured in a bizarre incident involving a crossbow. The attack happened at a house on the Lisnamurrican Road in Broughshane. Police said two men wearing motorcycle helmets called at the house and asked for directions before one of the men fired the weapon at the victim after 11.30 pm on Friday. He sustained an injury to his hand and was taken to hospital for treatment.

Two More Car Bomb Arrests

Another two people - a man and a woman - have now been arrested in connection with last week's bomb attack on an off-duty police officer. The PSNI officer sustained serious leg injuries in the car bomb which partially exploded as he was travelling near the village of Spamount in County Tyrone on Monday. Four men arrested on Thursday morning in relation to the same incident remain in police custody, while these latest arrests took place on Friday night. The man and woman are being questioned at the serious crime suite in Antrim.

Fill Empty Houses: Minister

NI Social Development Minister Margaret Ritchie has said she wants to see more of the Province's vacant properties occupied. Minister Ritchie has said 10% of the current 40,000 vacant homes in Northern Ireland could be let overnight, meaning at least 4,000 homes could be filled immediately. The Minister plans to take action, and has said her department will be contacting owners of property, in need of refurbishment, to outline the available improvement grants. Ms Ritchie has invested £40m into grants aimed at improving potential homes and said: "We will be writing out to all those people who own those empty homes affording them the opportunity to apply for an improvement grant, thereby adding to the number of houses that will be available for allocation that will deal with the record levels of homelessness."

National Trust Burglary

A number of valuable items have been stolen from the famous Florence Courthouse National Trust property near Enniskillen. Among the items taken was a painting of Arthur Cole, an 18th century baron of Florencecourt, a Chelsea china serving tureen, a bronze sculpture of two greyhounds, a British East Africa Automobile Association badge and seven paperweights. They were discovered missing after a tour of the property on Saturday afternoon.

(BMcC)