§ Mr. McCuskerasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement about the bomb incident at 392W Bessbrook, County Armagh, on 12 December in which a number of soldiers were injured; and if he will indicate (a) the amount, type and origin of the explosives, (b) the origin of the vehicle used and (c) the degree of similarity between the incident and the bomb on the same location on 17 April in which four policemen were killed.
§ Mr. Humphrey AtkinsShortly after noon on 12 December a home-made device, estimated to have consisted of between 300 and 500 lb. of home-made explosive, detonated in a hijacked cattle truck on the road between Bessbrook and Newry as two Army vehicles were passing. Two soldiers were injured; a third soldier and four civilians suffered from shock. Extensive damage was caused to nearby property. The vehicle used to conceal the explosive had been hijacked earlier in the day in Silver bridge, Co. Armagh. It has not been possible to establish the origin of the explosive used, or the means of detonation, but it is thought that the device, like that which killed four policemen in the same area on 17 April, was detonated by radio control. Police inquiries into the incident are continuing.