Bomb squad called to Edinburgh neighbourhood

A man has been held by police after an explosives scare at an Edinburgh neighbourhood.

Bomb disposal teams were drafted in to investigate reports of a “suspicious package” at a flat in the city’s Niddrie area.

Dozens of residents were evacuated from their homes after a member of the public raised the alarm on Monday night.

Images posted on social media show two soldiers and a bomb disposal specialist in heavy armour, similar to gear used in the hit film The Hurt Locker.

A Police Scotland spokesman said: “We have detained a 40-year-old man after a suspicious package was found at an address in Niddrie on Monday.

“Specialist engineers from the EOD attended.”

He added: “The surrounding homes were evacuated as a precaution while the engineers assessed the package.

“They established it was not a viable device and that it posed no threat to the public.”