There is now a "serious" danger of terrorism in Northern Ireland.

Britain's security service MI5 has raised the terrorism threat level in Northern Ireland from "substantial" to "severe" after the shooting of a police officer last month. The change comes as US President Joe Biden and former President Bill Clinton prepare to visit Northern Ireland to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. The UK has five terror threat levels, ranging from 'low' to 'critical'. Northern Ireland's threat level was lowered from 'severe' to 'substantial' last year, the first time it had been downgraded since 2010. The public should remain vigilant and report any concerns they have to the Police Service of Northern Ireland.

The Good Friday Agreement was signed in 1998, but the peace was shattered four months later when the Real IRA detonated a bomb in Omagh, killing 29 people. Paramilitary violence has continued at a low level since, and another attack in Omagh this February saw masked gunmen shoot and injure a police detective. The unionist DUP and nationalist Sinn Fein parties both condemned the shooting. Northern Ireland has been without a government since last February, with the DUP opposing the British government's Brexit deal with the EU. Sinn Fein backs the deal, arguing that the only alternative would be a return to a hard border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.