IRA may disband after appeal by Adams

THE Provisional IRA may be on the cusp of the most profound decision of its history, by declaring it is winding down after 30 years of violence during which more than 3,000 people lost their lives.

An IRA statement signalling its intention to disband is expected within the next fortnight, following yesterday’s appeal by Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams to the organisation to fully embrace and accept exclusively democratic means.

In what was portrayed by the party as a deeply significant and unilateral initiative to restore the fractured peace process, Mr Adams drew heavily on his authority as SF leader to ask the IRA to go out of business. “The way forward is by building political support for republican and democratic objectives across Ireland. I want to use this occasion, therefore, to appeal to the leadership of Óglaigh na nÉireann to full embrace and accept this alternative.” Last night, senior SF figures Martin McGuinness and Pat Doherty said they expected the IRA to respond sooner rather than later.