Injured PSNI officer regains consciousness

The PSNI officer who was critically injured in a dissident republican booby-trap car bomb in Co Antrim earlier this month has regained consciousness in hospital.

He remains in a critical but stable condition.

Two men were arrested in Belfast this morning and are being questioned in connection with the attempted murder of the police officer.

A 33-year-old man was detained in north Belfast and a 34-year-old in west Belfast. Both have been taken to Antrim Police Station for questioning.

The PSNI says a number of searches are continuing in west Belfast.

Constable Peadar Heffron's right leg was amputated just days after the bomb exploded under his car near Randalstown, Co Antrim.

The 33-year-old Catholic is an Irish language specialist for the PSNI and also captains its GAA team. Constable Heffron joined the PSNI when it was established and was recently married.

He had left his home and was on his way to work at Woodbourne Police Station in west Belfast when the bomb exploded on the Milltown Road.

A PSNI detective investigating the bombing said they were not ruling out a link to a similar booby-trap car bomb attack on a police officer's partner in east Belfast last year.

Shots fired in Crossmaglen

Separately, police are investigating a shooting outside the PSNI station at Crossmaglen in south Armagh last night. It was the second such incident in a month.

A car pulled up at the gates at around 9.30pm. Two people in the vehicle fired a number of shots before making off towards Culloville.

No-one was injured in the incident and police have appealed for information.

The attack has been condemned by Sinn Féin Councillor Terry Hearty, and by SDLP Councillor Geraldine Donnelly.

Ms Donnelly said it was an extremely reckless act that nobody wanted.

'By every measure of public opinion in this area, people want accountable policing, they want law and order and they want problems of crime and anti-social behaviour dealt with,' she said.