Top-secret document about Biden’s Belfast visit found on the street

A security scare shadowed President Biden’s trip to Northern Ireland on Wednesday after a top-secret document containing the itinerary for his visit to Belfast and information about his protective detail was found in the street.

A passerby discovered the police paper, which detailed where the president was staying in Northern Ireland as well as the phone numbers of the Police Service of Northern Ireland officers in his security detail, BBC Radio Ulster reported.

The PSNI confirmed the security breach in a statement to the Irish Examiner.

“An investigation has commenced and we have notified the Senior Information Risk Officer,” the statement read.

“We take the safety of visiting dignitaries, members of the public, and our officers and staff extremely seriously and will put the appropriate actions in place.”

Biden’s trip to Belfast proceeded without incident, with the president flying on to Dublin Wednesday afternoon.

A massive security operation involving over 300 officers got underway once the president arrived Tuesday evening to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

The 1998 accord marked the end of three decades of sectarian violence between Catholics and Protestants known as the Troubles, though tensions remain high and Irish Republican dissidents opposed to the peace process have been blamed for occasional outbreaks of violence since.

In addition, a post-Brexit trade dispute led to the collapse of the province’s power-sharing government last year.

On Monday, police in the border city of Derry (known as Londonderry to supporters of the British government) came under attack by a group in paramilitary uniforms who marched through the streets to commemorate the anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising — an armed insurrection credited with leading to Irish independence.

The rioters threw Molotov cocktails and other objects at a cop car that had been monitoring the group.

Over the weekend, police in Northern Ireland reportedly foiled a terrorist bomb plot intended to disrupt Biden’s Belfast visit.

Members of the New IRA paramilitary group allegedly sought to purchase bomb parts in Derry and construct an explosive device, similar to an attack involving a roadside bomb that the group carried out in November.

Biden marked the anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement — signed on April 10, 1998 — on Twitter, pledging that the US is committed to “preserving peace.” 

“25 years ago, Northern Ireland’s leaders chose peace,” Biden wrote.

“The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement ended decades of violence and brought stability. I look forward to marking the anniversary in Belfast, underscoring the U.S. commitment to preserving peace and encouraging prosperity.”

Biden will also attend a series of events later this week in County Louth, where he traces his Irish ancestry on his mother’s side.

On Friday he will visit County Mayo before returning to the US.

With Post wires