Two men arrested by police investigating a bomb attack in the centre of Belfast on 24 November have been released unconditionally.

The bomb partially exploded in a car at the entrance to Victoria Square, after a man was stopped in north Belfast and told to drive the device to the location.

Once the man had stopped his car outside Victoria Square, he then ran to the nearest police station where he raised the alarm.

The explosion happened as the Army prepared to examine the device.

The two men, aged 44 and 45, were arrested on Wednesday. Police said they have been released unconditionally.

Assistant Chief Constable for Crime Operations, Drew Harris, said: "The incident began with a car, a silver Renault Laguna, being hijacked in the Jamaica Street area of north Belfast. A number of masked men in boiler suits approached the driver, loaded a device into the rear of the vehicle, then the vehicle was taken to Victoria Street, close to the Victoria Square shopping centre. This was then reported to police, the security operation went into place and ATO were tasked to attend.

"The device partially exploded at about 11.15pm, causing damage to the car but no damage beyond the vehicle itself. The vehicle and device have both been recovered for further forensic examination. The device itself was between 50-60 kilos and it does look like home-made explosives at this time. Obviously this was a terrifying and shocking experience for the poor driver. As he was driving along, the device was right behind him. If it had fully detonated, it would have killed him outright without a doubt."

Chief Constable Matt Baggott said: "There has been a surge recently in dissident republican activity. We have seen letter bombs, under-car booby traps, blast bombs and hijackings. It would appear that these groups are trying to bring themselves to notice again and they seem to be in some form of bizarre competition to make sure they have a profile.

"You can expect from the PSNI a greater and significant increase in our street presence and visibility over the next few weeks to provide people with the security and reassurance that they need. We are determined that both the people and traders have a successful Christmas. We will do everything we can to make sure that happens. What we really need is public support. I would say to the vigilant members of the public, please don't hesitate to ring in if you see anything that is suspicious. We need people to give us information because our success is very much dependant on full public support."

(IT)