Two Belfast shops and a pub were hit by firebombs on Sunday, and dissident Republicans eager to upset the fragile Northern Ireland peace process were suspected of the attacks.
Police warned Belfast shopowners not to return to their stores for fear there could be more incendiary devices."It is clear we are a long way from peace," said Jeffrey Donaldson of the pro-British Ulster Unionist Party.
The firebombs followed Saturday's car bomb attack in the town of Banbridge that injured 35 people and damaged up to 200 houses.
Britain's Northern Ireland Secretary Mo Mowlam angrily condemned the car bomb as "a cowardly attack" and said it was a miracle no one was killed.
The 35 people were wounded - none seriously - when the bomb exploded in the town center of Banbridge on a busy Saturday shopping day.