IRA may disband units, claims paper

THE Government would not comment last night on claims the IRA is considering standing down its active service units and destroying weapons in public to get the peace process back on track.

A Sunday newspaper report claimed the IRA is planning a secret meeting to discuss abandoning violence, destroying weapons in public and joining the governing body of Northern Ireland's police within weeks.

In return, the British Government has agreed to dismantle about a dozen watchtowers along the border, grant pardon to terrorists on the run and an amnesty to the Enniskillen bombers, according to the Sunday Times.