There is no specific threat to Ireland from international terrorists, the Taoiseach told the Dáil this afternoon.
Mr Ahern was asked by Labour Party leader Pat Rabbitte whether there was any evidence that Islamic or other international groups intended to attack Ireland.
The Taoiseach said the Government's high-level group on terrorism had no reason to believe there was any risk to Ireland. He accepted there was "considerable concern . . . about these issues".
Green Party leader Trevor Sargent queried whether or not the group was "sufficiently well-informed to do its job".
He cited reports at the weekend of Israeli secret agents being "caught in the act" of trying to assassinate a Palestinian militant in Dublin and asked if the Government was aware of their presence in Ireland.
Mr Ahern said the group was not involved in day-to-day issues, but insisted it was fully up to date with all information on terrorist groups.
Most information comes from international sources like Interpol and Europol. He said the gardaí were engaged with international terrorism intelligence agencies. Any issues that may arise of relevance to Ireland are passed on by the gardaí to the group, the Taoiseach added.
