Unionist urges moderate vote – ISN
April 19th, 2005
DERRY – Speaking on BBC TV over the weekend, Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) leader David Trimble called on voters to support “centrist” parties in Northern Ireland in Britain’s forthcoming general election.
Trimble’s call amounted to asking Northern Ireland’s unionist population to vote for the more moderate nationalist party, the Social, Democratic, and Labour Party (SDLP), instead of the UUP’s rivals within unionism, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). (more…)
IRA considering Sinn Féin peace appeal – ISN
April 8th, 2005
DERRY- The Irish Republican Army (IRA) on Thursday said it was considering Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams’ request to give up the armed struggle and adopt a peaceful, democratic political campaign to end British rule in Northern Ireland.
The paramilitary organization said it was giving “due consideration” to Adams’ request, adding that a definitive response would be given “in due course”.
The leader of Sinn Féin, the political party linked to the IRA, welcomed the paramilitary group’s pledge to address his appeal, and responded to critics of the speech, saying that it was “a genuine attempt to drive the peace process forward”.
While some welcomed Adams’ statement as significant, others said it was a disingenuous campaign ploy. (more…)
Sinn Féin leader tells IRA to accept peace – ISN
April 7th, 2005
DERRY – Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams on Wednesday urged the Irish Republican Army (IRA) to accept peace and give its total support to democratic politics in Northern Ireland.
In what is being described as either a landmark speech or as unconcealed electioneering in the run-up to the 5 May general elections in Britain, Adams said the “struggle had reached a defining moment”.
He appealed directly to the IRA leadership to become activists in a movement to rebuild the struggling Northern Ireland peace process and push for a single all-Ireland state.
“The way forward is by building political support for republican and democratic objectives across Ireland and winning support for those objectives internationally,” Adams said.
Sinn Féin is seen as the political wing of the IRA. Many observers believe that Adams and Sinn Féin Chief Negotiator Martin McGuinness are members of the IRA leadership. (more…)
Loyalist assets seized – ISN
March 24th, 2005
Assets worth over UK£5 million in properties and back accounts linked to Protestant Loyalist paramilitaries have been frozen by Northern Ireland’s main criminal assets agency.
Late on Wednesday night, the Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) seized several properties in Northern Ireland and in Dublin in the Republic of Ireland, as well as an apartment on the Cote D’Azur in France. In total, 49 properties came under the remit of the ARA action, which had been permitted by Belfast’s High Court. Eight bank accounts were also frozen. (more…)
Irish PM connects heist to IRA – ISN
March 15th, 2005
DUBLIN – Speculation is growing that the Irish Republican Army (IRA) had a part in the theft of over €2 million in Dublin on Monday morning.
In an operation bearing similarities to the theft of some €38 million from Belfast’s Northern Bank last December, an armed gang abducted a family on the north side of Dublin on Sunday night, before stealing what is estimated to be between €2 and €4 million from a security van.
Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern took the unusual step of commenting on what is ostensibly a criminal act, saying the robbery was the work of a well-organized gang. (more…)
Orange Order cuts party ties – ISN
March 14th, 2005
DERRY – The Orange Order, the largest non-religious Protestant organization in Ireland, has severed its century-old formal link to the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), adding strength to the claim that moderate forces in Northern Ireland have been put on the defensive.
At a Saturday meeting of the Order’s ruling council, or Grand Lodge, the organization decided that political change meant that a link with any political party was no longer in its interests.
Speaking after the meeting, Orange Order Grand Master Robert Saulters said: “The Loyal Orange Institution will continue to lobby for the unionist cause as events require and we will seek to establish good relationships with all those engaged in the political interests of the unionist people.” (more…)
IRA offers to execute murder suspects – ISN
March 9th, 2005
DERRY – In a bizarre twist to the McCartney murder saga, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) late on Tuesday offered to shoot those it believes killed the 33-year-old Belfast man on 31 January.
In a lengthy statement, the organization said that it had conducted its own internal investigation into the killing. It concluded that four men, two of whom were IRA members, bore greatest responsibility, and offered to execute these alleged perpetrators.
McCartney’s family immediately distanced themselves from the statement, saying that they wanted justice for their brother via the court system. (more…)
Sinn Féin conference overshadowed by murder – ISN
March 7th, 2005
DERRY – Sinn Féin, the political party linked to the Irish Republican Army (IRA), on Friday suspended seven of its members for their alleged involvement in the murder of Belfast Catholic Robert McCartney.
Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams said those suspended were named by McCartney’s family as having been involved in the murder. McCartney’s sisters appeared to a standing ovation at the Sinn Féin annual conference in Dublin over the weekend.
The conference, which ordinarily would have celebrated the centenary of the founding of the party, was overshadowed by the fallout from McCartney’s violent death in Belfast on 31 January and the alleged theft by the IRA of some €38 million from a Belfast bank in December. (more…)
Secrecy shrouds arrest of IRA murder suspect – ISN
March 2nd, 2005
DERRY – Northern Ireland police arrested a 29-year-old man was arrested in Belfast on Tuesday in connection with the murder of Robert McCartney. The suspect handed himself in to police in the company of a solicitor, but was released early on Wednesday without charges.
The man, whose name has not been released, was not one of the three expelled last Friday by the Irish Republican Army (IRA) on suspicion of their involvement in the McCartney murder. It is believed that 12-15 men were involved in the killing. Earlier on Tuesday, Hugh Orde, head of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), said all three men dismissed from the IRA had left the country. However, the PSNI later retracted that statement.
McCartney died outside a Belfast bar on 31 January, after getting involved in a dispute with a group of local IRA men. (more…)
IRA expels 3 murder suspects – ISN
February 28th, 2005
DERRY – The Provisional IRA expelled three of its members suspected of involvement in the brutal 31 January killing of Robert McCartney outside a pub in east Belfast. Another fourth man was arrested after handing himself in to the police, and was later released without charges.
In a lengthy statement issued on Friday night, the IRA conceded that “some Republicans” had been involved in the murder, and that “any intimidation or threats in the name of the IRA to any person who wishes to help the McCartney family will not be tolerated”. (more…)
