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New IRA group claims responsibility for parcel bombs

LONDON, Feb. 17 (UPI) -- A group calling itself the "IRA" has claimed responsibility for seven crude parcel bombs sent to British army recruiting stations last week, officials said.

The IRA, or Irish Republican Army, disbanded in the mid-2000s after declaring an official end to its guerrilla military campaign against Britain for Irish independence. Recently, a new group formed ahead of the London Olympics in 2012 calling itself the "New IRA" formed and was linked to letter bombs sent last fall, the Mirror reported Monday.

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The recent parcel bombs, seven in total, a government spokesman said, were discovered undetonated at British army recruitment centers across the United Kingdom. They were crude in nature but could have proved deadly if they had gone off. British Prime Minister David Cameron said last week the bombs bear "all the hallmarks of Northern Ireland-related terrorism."

The bombs are believed to be the first Northern Ireland-originating terror attacks against Britain in 13 years, the Mirror said.

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