Gardaí (Irish police) have intercepted a car containing a bomb in County Monaghan which they believe was being driven across the border for an attack in Northern Ireland.

Two people have been arrested after the vehicle was stopped on the N2 near Carrickmacross, County Monaghan, at about 15:00 local time on Wednesday.

The bomb had been completed and was ready for use, Irish broadcaster RTÉ has reported.

A woman in her 20s, who was the driver of the vehicle, was arrested on Wednesday afternoon and a man in his 40s has since been arrested.

The arrests were part of an operation targeting dissident republican activity.

Gardaí requested the assistance of the Irish Defence Forces Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team who examined the vehicle.

In a statement, gardaí said the outcome of that is not being released for operational reasons.