Probe after blast at Irish culture office

INVESTIGATIONS are under way today after a bomb detonated outside the City of Culture office in Londonderry.

There were no reports of injuries and the damage to the building is said to be relatively minor.

A warning with a recognised codeword is understood to have been given at around 10pm last night around an hour before the explosion in Guildhall Square.

It is the second time that the office has been targeted, after a pipe bomb planted by dissident republicans in January caused minor damage to the building.

Derry’s winning of the UK City of Culture title has secured cross-community support in Northern Ireland.

Witnesses said it was a large blast which left smoke billowing out of the building.

The city’s Shipquay Street was closed off by officers investigating the blast.