INLA EXPECTED TO ANNOUNCE CEASEFIRE
INLA expected to announce ceasefire
By Noel McAdam
THE INLA was today expected to announce a permanent end to its bloody campaign of violence.
The ruthless Republican splinter group has been in contact with Government officials in London and Dublin for some time, and a formal ceasefire has been long anticipated.
An official statement was expected to be made today through its political wing, the Irish Republican Socialist Party.
It came as leading loyalist Billy Hutchinson claimed he has been targeted by the INLA three times in the last eighteen months.
The INLA, formed 23 years ago, has been responsible for around 150 murders.
It killed Conservative party Northern Ireland spokesman Airey Neave, a close friend of Margaret Thatcher, at Westminster in 1979.
Three years later 17 people were killed - 11 of them soldiers - by an INLA bomb at the Droppin' Well pub in Ballykelly.
At the end of last year the group admitted killing Loyalist Volunteer Force leader Billy Wright.
Despite sending signals of its desire to enter into "true dialogue" with the government, it also shot dead leading loyalist Jim Guiney and former RUC member Cyril Stewart this year.
It also claimed responsibility for the bomb attack in Newtownhamilton in June, although security sources have doubted the group's bomb-making capability.
Internal rows have also dogged the group, resulting in the deaths of prominent figures including Dominic McGlinchey, Hugh Torney and Gino Gallagher.
It also suffered a severe blow when 27 alleged members were convicted on the testimony of "supergrass" Harry Kirkpatrick - though all but two had their convictions quashed.
Meanwhile, First Minister-designate David Trimble today sent a clear message to Sinn Fein and the IRA to begin decommissioning now.
He said it was his duty to ensure any new Assembly executive is comprised of those who unequivocally repudiate violence for good and whose associated groups had disarmed.
But Taoiseach Bertie Ahern last night urged Mr Trimble to talk to Sinn Fein leaders. "There has to be...an acceptance of responsibility to engage in inclusive dialogue, face to face...." he said.
By Noel McAdam
THE INLA was today expected to announce a permanent end to its bloody campaign of violence.
The ruthless Republican splinter group has been in contact with Government officials in London and Dublin for some time, and a formal ceasefire has been long anticipated.
An official statement was expected to be made today through its political wing, the Irish Republican Socialist Party.
It came as leading loyalist Billy Hutchinson claimed he has been targeted by the INLA three times in the last eighteen months.
The INLA, formed 23 years ago, has been responsible for around 150 murders.
It killed Conservative party Northern Ireland spokesman Airey Neave, a close friend of Margaret Thatcher, at Westminster in 1979.
Three years later 17 people were killed - 11 of them soldiers - by an INLA bomb at the Droppin' Well pub in Ballykelly.
At the end of last year the group admitted killing Loyalist Volunteer Force leader Billy Wright.
Despite sending signals of its desire to enter into "true dialogue" with the government, it also shot dead leading loyalist Jim Guiney and former RUC member Cyril Stewart this year.
It also claimed responsibility for the bomb attack in Newtownhamilton in June, although security sources have doubted the group's bomb-making capability.
Internal rows have also dogged the group, resulting in the deaths of prominent figures including Dominic McGlinchey, Hugh Torney and Gino Gallagher.
It also suffered a severe blow when 27 alleged members were convicted on the testimony of "supergrass" Harry Kirkpatrick - though all but two had their convictions quashed.
Meanwhile, First Minister-designate David Trimble today sent a clear message to Sinn Fein and the IRA to begin decommissioning now.
He said it was his duty to ensure any new Assembly executive is comprised of those who unequivocally repudiate violence for good and whose associated groups had disarmed.
But Taoiseach Bertie Ahern last night urged Mr Trimble to talk to Sinn Fein leaders. "There has to be...an acceptance of responsibility to engage in inclusive dialogue, face to face...." he said.
Further Information
Publisher: BELFAST TELEGRAPH
Ref: BT/0186
Published Date: 22-Aug-98
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