Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney was taken off stage by officials during a speech in Belfast on Friday after the event organiser said a suspect device was discovered in the car park of the venue.
"There is a security alert and the PSNI (Police Service of Northern Ireland) are currently assessing the situation. Everyone has had to evacuate the centre," Tim Attwood, secretary of the Hume Foundation, told Reuters at the scene.
(Reporting by Amanda Ferguson; Editing by Alex Richardson)