Posted on 07/14/2003 7:45:54 PM PDT by Mr. Mulliner
Report: suspected IRA bombmaker is a reporter
Yaakov Katz
Jul. 15, 2003
The British media reported Monday that an Irish national who was arrested by security forces on suspicion that he came to Israel to train Palestinian terrorists, is a journalist and not a member of the Real IRA.
The Shin Bet confirmed to The Jerusalem Post on Sunday that the man was arrested Saturday afternoon and was being questioned.
Britain's The Observer reported on Sunday that a massive manhunt was under way for the Irish bombmaker, traveling on a British passport, who is believed to be a member of the extreme Real IRA faction and to have arrived at Ben-Gurion Airport three weeks ago.
The BBC identified the man as Sean O Muireagain, a journalist for the La newspaper in Belfast.
"He is a well-known Irish language and Palestine Solidarity Committee activist in Belfast and was reporting from Jenin for La and Raidio na Gaeltachta. He was arrested on his way into Ramallah," spokesman for the paper, Ciaran O Pronntaigh said.
Press Officer for the British embassy in Tel Aviv Neil Wigan told the Jerusalem Post that he could not confirm the report but did say that the embassy had put in a formal request to meet with O Muireagain.
"We've been informed by the Israelis that they have a British prisoner and we are pushing for consular access," Wigan said.
According to the report, O Muireagin was in Israel to report on events in the territories and had submitted a story from Jenin last week.
"On July 8, we published a full-page account from Jenin in the West Bank by Sean O Muireagain in our paper, a piece which was accompanied by his photograph, proof that he was in the occupied territories openly," the Irish paper said.
According to the Observer's report Sunday, the man, later named as John Morgan, co-owns an engineering business on the Northern Ireland-Irish Republic border, and is reported to be an expert bombmaker and a past member of the Provisional IRA.
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