A MORTAR attack on a British army base in Germany has provoked outrage in Dublin and London and fed growing doubts over the republican commitment to the peace process.
The assault on Quebec barracks in Osnabruck - thought to have been carried out by the IRA - came less than two weeks after the massive bomb in Manchester.
Sinn Fein has denied any knowledge of the attack, and its spokeswoman declined to speculate on any possible IRA involvement.
There were no reports of injuries but the attack, involving up to three mortars, left several buildings damaged. German police said a Ford Transit van with British plates was being examined.
In Dublin, the Tanaiste, Mr Spring, said last night the mortar attack was an "inane act of violence which makes no contribution whatsoever to the ongoing search for peace and reconciliation.
A Government spokesman said the incident would not materially change the situation whichexists, and the lines of communication with Sinn Fein, maintained at official level since the murder of Det Garda Jerry McCabe, remain open.
Mr Andrew Hunter, chairman of the Conservative backbench Northern Ireland Committee, said: "The IRA has effectively declared war on the British and Irish people. There is no room for Sinn Fein at the negotiating table while this mindset prevails."
Immediate fears were that the attack signalled a new IRA campaign against British targets on mainland Europe.
Yesterday, at a London press conference, the Sinn Fein chairman, Mr Mitchel McLaughlin, warned that the IRA could strike again. Refusing to be drawn into any condemnation of the Mancbestdrbombing, he warned that further IRA terror attacks could not be ruled out. "The IRA cessation is over. They could strike at any time and any place," he said.
A statement by the British army 4 Armoured Brigade, which is based at the Osnabruck barracks, said the attack was presumably carried out by a terrorist group
The mortars were aimed at the petrol station of the base but missed, local police said. They said the Ford Transit was parked about 200 yards from the base and the mortars broke window panes and damad buildings.
German police began a nationwide investigation. They said residents living nearby heard three explosions. "We have found two of the mortars. One went 20 yards inside the base and hit a tree," a spokesman said.
"Another was found just outside the base, close to a fence. We have not located the third one yet."
A Ministry of Defence in London said a total of l0,700 people, including servicemen's families, were based in various barracks around the town. That number, included 4,900 soldiers.
It was not known how many people are based at Quebec barracks, the largest British base in Germany, but it was believed there were only about 150 troops on the base at the time of the attack and that all had been accounted for.
The Quebec barracks was the target of an earlier attack in June 1989 which injured five British soldiers.
The British Prime Minister, Mr John Major, attending the G7 summit in Lyon, France, was immediately informed of the attack as he dined with the other leaders last night.
A spokesman for Mr Major said they had few details at present and were awaiting clarification.