Irish Foreign Secretary Simon Coveney has been evacuated from a building in north Belfast due to a security alert.
He was lecturing on peacebuilding at the Houben Center on Crumlin Road when a van was reportedly hijacked and driven to the venue.
Mr Coveney said he was “sad and frustrated that someone has been attacked and harassed in this way”.
SDLP MP Claire Hanna said the event ended abruptly when the minister’s security guards escorted him from the building.
“We know that a vehicle was hijacked and explosives or something claimed to be explosives were driven to the venue,” she said.
Police advised motorists to avoid the area and seek alternative routes.
Ms Hanna added: “People are frustrated.
“The irony hasn’t escaped anyone’s notice that this was an event of reconciliation, of common ground with a truly diverse audience.
“That it was disturbed so aggressively is appalling.”
A large crowd including a number of politicians attended the event organized by the John and Pat Hume Foundation.
The Houben Center is at the intersection of Ardoyne and Shankill – it functions as an intercongregational center and also as the community center for Holy Cross Church.
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