Fears of loyalists bombing in the Republic of Ireland were raised by the Irish Government after the IRA ceasefire ended in 1996, newly released Irish State papers show.
The then-Irish premier John Bruton warned a loyalist bombing campaign in the Republic would be “like a civil war” and would mean the complete unravelling of the Northern Ireland peace process.
The danger of a possible loyalist backlash was discussed during an Irish Government meeting within hours of the IRA ending its cessation of violence and the subsequent bombing attack in the London Docklands on February 9, 1996. The blast killed two people and injured more than 100 others.
