Dissident republican groups still have the capacity, ability and desire to carry out attacks on police despite their small numbers, Northern Ireland's justice minister has said.

It comes after a delivery driver's vehicle was hijacked and told he would be killed if he did not drive a bomb, which was placed into the boot of his car, to the police station in Lurgan.

The device was found to be a "crude, but viable improvised explosive device", and police believe it is "highly likely" that dissident republicans are behind the attack.

Naomi Long said while there have been no concerns about an uptick in activity, those involved are "wedded" to destruction and violence.

"If they weren't intent in causing harm, then they wouldn't be in those groups, it's the only purpose that they serve," she told BBC News NI's Good Morning Ulster programme.

"From our perspective, we take it seriously. I know the PSNI [Police Service of Northern Ireland] work very hard to keep people safe,  to suppress the activities of these organisations and where they can do so, bring the people involved to justice.

"But we can't be complacent about the risks."

Long said there were "not large numbers" of people still involved in these groups, but the attack in Lurgan is a "demonstration for anyone who has any doubt that these are people who are completely wedded to destruction".

"We are talking about people who have been fairly committed to what they're doing over many years, and I think we can see that they remain wedded to violence and they're not in any sense trying to depart from that," she said.

"I think it's more likely that this is some kind of rallying the troops sort of issue ahead of Easter, but no consideration for an innocent person going to deliver pizza and end up being hijacked at gunpoint and forced to drive a bomb through the town."

The justice minister said while those responsible may try and "dress it up" as an attack on police, the incident is a "reckless attack on the people of Lurgan".

The minister visited senior police officers at Lurgan police station on Wednesday morning, adding that it was "important" to thank officers for their work in the wake of the attack.

"[Officers] find themselves being attacked by people that have nothing to offer this community other than disruption and misery, and something that is a historic relic frankly of where we used to be," she said.

"Nobody is complacent about the level of risk and the level of threat, and yet every day officers have come to this building and others like it, they put on a uniform and they go out and they serve."

Sinn Féin assembly member John O'Dowd said it was a "shocking" incident, particularly for the delivery driver.

He said thousands of people had gathered in Lurgan weeks ago to celebrate St Patrick's Day, and that the "starkness of this event" casts a shadow on the town.

When asked about the potential of dissident republicans being involved in the attack, O'Dowd, who represents Upper Bann, said he did not see support for the groups.

"I know that the vast majority of people in Lurgan want to move on and we have seen huge progress over this last 20, 25 years," he told Good Morning Ulster.

"I would appeal to anyone who believes there's going to be a return to the past to think again."

Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Micheál Martin said it was an "appalling method", which harkened back to the Troubles.

"It takes a very depraved mind to conceive of attacks of that kind. I condemn it totally," he said.

"It's depressing that that type of thing is still prevalent and there's no room for it in our society."

Tánaiste (Irish Deputy Prime Minister) Simon Harris said the attempted attack was "deeply chilling".

"The dark history needs to be left just there, and it is a reminder of the fact that we can never ever let our guard down in relation to that.

"We have a peace process on the island of Ireland, an enduring one, an ongoing one, and this chilling event is deeply concerning."

At about 22:30 BST on Monday, a delivery driver in a white Audi was stopped by two masked men - one of whom was armed with a pistol - on Deramore Drive in the Kilwilkie estate.

He was threatened at gunpoint and ordered to drive his car to the police station on Church Place in the town.

When he arrived he told security staff there was a bomb in the car, which later triggered a security operation. About 100 homes were evacuated overnight, with residents taking refuge in Lurgan town hall and a number of roads in town centre were closed.

A controlled explosion was also carried out.

At a press conference on Tuesday, police confirmed that the device, while crude, was viable.

Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson said: "As unsophisticated as it was, it posed a significant risk to the terrified delivery driver, our security staff and the local community."

The term "dissident republicans" describes a range of individuals who do not accept the Good Friday Agreement - the 1998 peace deal which ended the worst of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

The Provisional IRA - the main armed republican paramilitary group for most of the Troubles - declared a ceasefire in the run up to the agreement and officially ended its violent campaign in 2005.

Dissident republicanism is made up of various groups which broke away from the Provisional IRA in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, including the Continuity IRA and New IRA.

The groups are much smaller than the Provisional IRA, although they have access to high-calibre weapons and have used improvised explosive devices and mortars in attacks and attempted attacks.

A senior police officer says it is "highly likely" that dissident republicans are responsible for the attack.

Fergal McCusker, 28, was found shot dead behind a youth club in Maghera in January 2018.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland are appealing for anyone with information.

Rolandas Kvederis, 49, was found dead at a property in Ranfurley Road.

Three boys, one aged 13 and two aged 15, and a girl aged 16, have been charged with various offences including assault.