PROVISIONALS TOLD REAL IRA TO CALL A HALT
Provisionals 'told Real IRA to call a halt'
By Brendan Anderson
THE dissident Oglaigh na hEireann group responsible for the Omagh bomb carnage suspended Its campaign after being warned off by mainstream republicans in the south, It was claimed last night.
Republicans in the Dublin area said the leader of the so-called Real IRA, Oglaigh na hEireann, had been threatened and ordered to cease his campaign. In the words of a veteran republican he was "made an offer he couldn't refuse".
A statement issued by the group to the Irish News shortly before midnight on Tuesday said the Real IRA, estimated by British intelligence agencies to number around 30 activists, had suspended operations to engage in a consultation process about its future.
Observers feel the move may have been brought about by a combination of pressure from the Irish government, which on Monday gave the group 24 hours to call a truce, the IRA and the public backlash following the Omagh bomb.
The southern republicans also disclosed that their former quarter-master general, who left the mainstream movement after a disagreement over the peace process, removed a "substantial quantity" of commercial explosives from IRA dumps before parting from his former colleagues. While the Real IRA leader did not take rifles, short-arms or ammunition, he is said to have removed thousands of pounds of Semtex and secreted it in
locations known only to himself and one or two followers. During a number of earlier attempts by the IRA to recover the explosives, the dissident leader is said to have told them: "If you kill me, you will never get the Semtex back".
By Brendan Anderson
THE dissident Oglaigh na hEireann group responsible for the Omagh bomb carnage suspended Its campaign after being warned off by mainstream republicans in the south, It was claimed last night.
Republicans in the Dublin area said the leader of the so-called Real IRA, Oglaigh na hEireann, had been threatened and ordered to cease his campaign. In the words of a veteran republican he was "made an offer he couldn't refuse".
A statement issued by the group to the Irish News shortly before midnight on Tuesday said the Real IRA, estimated by British intelligence agencies to number around 30 activists, had suspended operations to engage in a consultation process about its future.
Observers feel the move may have been brought about by a combination of pressure from the Irish government, which on Monday gave the group 24 hours to call a truce, the IRA and the public backlash following the Omagh bomb.
The southern republicans also disclosed that their former quarter-master general, who left the mainstream movement after a disagreement over the peace process, removed a "substantial quantity" of commercial explosives from IRA dumps before parting from his former colleagues. While the Real IRA leader did not take rifles, short-arms or ammunition, he is said to have removed thousands of pounds of Semtex and secreted it in
locations known only to himself and one or two followers. During a number of earlier attempts by the IRA to recover the explosives, the dissident leader is said to have told them: "If you kill me, you will never get the Semtex back".
Further Information
Publisher: THE IRISH NEWS
Ref: IN/0099
Published Date: 20-Aug-98
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