DISSIDENT republicans were yesterday blamed for the attempted abduction of a prominent loyalist politician in west Belfast.

A CATHOLIC priest caught up in loyalist protests at Holycross Primary School in Belfast has been told he will be killed within days.

A pipe bomb attack on a flashpoint primary school in north Belfast will not signal the start of a new protest campaign by loyalists, it was claimed tonight.

The chairman of the board of governors at the Catholic Holy Cross primary school in north Belfast said he hopes the discovery of a pipe bomb at the school earlier today does not signal the start of a new sectarian campaign.

A close associate of Johnny “Mad Dog” Adair escaped a gun attack in a shooting linked to the loyalist paramilitary feud in Belfast today.

Three men were today shot and injured in what bore all the hallmarks of a loyalist sectarian gun attack in north Belfast.

Two men were shot and injured in what appeared to be a loyalist drive-by shooting in north Belfast today.

A fresh bid for peace in Belfast’s sectarian flashpoint areas was launched tonight as loyalists invited the IRA to join them in halting all street violence.

Loyalist protesters stayed away as children at the flashpoint Holy Cross Primary School returned to class today.

A PRIEST at the centre of the Holy Cross dispute spoke of his fears yesterday for the new term as children prepare to return to school at a north Belfast flashpoint.

The chairman of the board of governors at the Holy Cross girls’ primary school in north Belfast has expressed concern ahead of the beginning of the new school term.

Fresh violence has erupted in north Belfast this evening, with nationalists and loyalists throwing missiles at each other across the peaceline separating nationalist Ardoyne from the loyalist Glenbryn estate.

Political efforts to stem the rising tide of violence at sectarian flashpoints across Belfast were intensifying today with a number of high-profile meetings following a night of further violence in the city.

A woman and children had a narrow escape tonight after their North Belfast home was attacked with gunfire in a sectarian flash point area of the city.

Reports of gunfire in a volatile north Belfast district where a bitterly disputed loyalist march took place were tonight being probed by police.

Extra police and soldiers are expected to be drafted into north Belfast tomorrow in preparation for a controversial loyalist parade through a nationalist area.

Police and Army were out in force in North Belfast after fresh violence erupted in the flashpoint area.

REPUBLICANS and loyalists have been involved in high-level talks in a bid to end violence in north Belfast, it emerged last night.

Shots were fired in flashpoint north Belfast as sectarian tensions erupted in the area overnight.

A pipe bomb discovered at the rear of Catholic homes in north Belfast was intended to add to the sectarian death toll in the area, it is claimed.

The Bishop of Down and Connor, Dr Patrick Walsh, has accused the Ulster Defence Association of murdering Catholic teenager Gerard Lawlor out or raw sectarian hatred.

Three men were today in hospital after being shot in the legs in apparent paramilitary style attacks in a republican area of north Belfast.

The Ulster Defence Association has issued a statement tonight admitting responsibility for the murder of 19-year-old Gerard Lawlor, a Catholic father-of-one, in north Belfast.

Talks on the current political and security crisis in Northern Ireland were today taking place between the British government and Sinn Fein.

THE mother of the Catholic man shot dead by loyalists in north Belfast yesterday appealed for no retaliation and said she would pray for his killers.

Sinn Fein’s Gerry Kelly has blamed the Ulster Defence Association for the murder of a Catholic civilian in north Belfast last night.

The mother of the Catholic man shot dead by loyalists in north Belfast today appealed for no retaliation.

A man has been shot dead in north Belfast as the area was rocked by a series of shootings.

Nationalist residents in north Belfast have rejected a peace plan drawn up for the flashpoint Ardoyne area because it would have included the construction of a wall between the Catholic and Protestant communities.

Pupils of the Holy Cross girls’ primary school in north Belfast walked to school in peace this morning, despite two nights of sectarian rioting centred around the Catholic school.

A soldier is believed to have suffered acid burns to his face after being struck by an acid bomb thrown by loyalists in Twaddell Avenue tonight, police said.

A footpath row between two mothers sparked the new outbreak of sectarian violence which erupted in flashpoint North Belfast, police said today.

The Catholic primary school at the eye of the latest violence to engulf North Belfast was closed today to prevent any of its young pupils being injured.

Catholic children were today preparing to go to Holy Cross Primary school in north Belfast without encountering loyalist protesters for the first time in three months.

Political leaders in the North are finalising a package to tackle the dispute between Catholics and loyalists in North Belfast.

Sinn Fein has welcomed the resolution of the Holy Cross School dispute in North Belfast. Loyalists suspended their protests last night.

Catholic parents today breathed a huge sigh of relief after loyalists called off protests outside the Holy Cross primary school in north Belfast.

Loyalists have suspended their protests outside the Holy Cross Catholic school in north Belfast.

Loyalist protesters are inching towards ending the Holy Cross school blockade after talks with Northern Ireland First Minister David Trimble.

Angry scenes marred the Holy Cross blockade today as tensions spilled over on the disputed North Belfast school run.

An end to the Holy Cross School dispute could be in sight, it was claimed tonight.

The death of a Protestant teenager during rioting in north Belfast was a senseless waste of life, Northern Ireland First Minister David Trimble said tonight.

Police were today switching tactics in a determined bid to resolve the 12 week loyalist protest outside a Catholic primary school in north Belfast.

The residents of the loyalist Glenbryn estate in Ardoyne, north Belfast, have agreed to suspend their long-running protest outside the Catholic Holy Cross primary school today while the children sit their 11-plus exam.