Two men on IRA arms cache charges

TWO men will appear in court today accused of possessing a large cache of guns and explosives linked to the IRA.

Detectives charged the pair, aged 42 and 33, after the arms were found at a warehouse beside a bar in South Belfast. An assault rifle, six handguns, five timer power units and 2,000 rounds of ammunition were discovered during searches at Essex Street in the Lower Ormeau area.

The men are due to appear at Belfast Magistrates' Court accused of possession with intent to endanger life.

A third man arrested and questioned has been released without charge.

Police chiefs say the weapons belonged to the Provos, dealing another blow to the Northern Ireland peace process.

The IRA is already under huge pressure to make a huge disarmament gesture before the suspended power sharing regime at Stormont can get up and running again.

Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble has demanded an explanation from republicans over the arsenal of suspected IRA weapons.

Mr Trimble said the haul uncovered by the security forces had a huge significance for the future of the peace process.

Addressing the Sinn Fein leadership, he said: "What is going on? What are you up to? You tell us you want to pursue peace and politics so why is this happening?

"Why are members of the mainstream IRA engaged in preparation for violence?"

Mr Trimble also called on chief constable Hugh Orde to make public the type of weapons, their country of origin and date of manufacture."

Speaking in Dublin, Foreign Affairs Minister Brian Cowen said the matter was serious but he needed to see the details of police reports before he could comment further.

"Clearly any issue such as this identifies for us the fact that we have to get a move to acts of completion on the part of the IRA. "We want a decommissioning of weapons. We want an end to paramilitary activity. We want an act of completion on the part of the IRA.

"But what we are also doing as governments is to ensure that we have acts of completion across the board, so that we can resolve those issues in the weeks ahead."

He said during his meeting yesterday with Northern Ireland Secretary Paul Murphy they would review the situation based on the Hillsborough discussions, during which very significant progress was made.

Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams warned against getting "into a tizzy" over the arms find. Mr Adams said although the find was significant he would not be "discommoded" by what had happened.