Bomb blast outside Ulster court house

There were no initial reports of any injuries in the blast in the Co Down town.

Police said the vehicle was abandoned at the front of the building at around 10pm.

Officers were evacuating people from the area when the car exploded.

Republican dissidents opposed to the peace process will be the prime suspects for the attack.

It came only days after a mortar bomb was abandoned outside a police station in the nearby Co Armagh village of Keady. It failed to detonate.

Last month a Roman Catholic police officer was seriously injured in car bomb attack in Co Antrim while a number of police stations have been shot at in recent weeks.

Chairman of the nationalist SDLP in Newry, Gary McKeown condemned those responsible.

"Lives could have been lost as a result of this bombing," he said.

"It serves absolutely no purpose and does nothing for the community."