Device found near St Teresa's primary school on the Glen Road had capacity to 'maim or kill' say police
Army bomb disposal experts have confirmed that a device found near a west Belfast school was a pipe bomb.
The security alert on Tuesday forced the closure of St Teresa's primary school on the Glen Road and a number of homes also had to be evacuated.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland's chief superintendent, Mark Hamilton, said the device had the capacity to "maim or kill".
"At around 03:00 GMT police and Northern Ireland fire and rescue service attended a report of a fire at business premises at the Glen Road area," he said.
"After re-examining the scene, police discovered a suspicious object in the area.
"The device has been taken away for further examination but we can confirm that it was a viable pipe bomb which had the capacity to kill or maim."
Hamilton said it was "particularly chilling" given the fact that a primary school was so close to the scene.
He added: "This is a residential area and we could have been looking at serious tragedy here.
"There is absolutely no doubt that this device was intended to murder and we would ask anyone with any information in relation to this incident to come forward and tell us what they know about this."