IRA poised to make groundbreaking statement

Expectation is growing the IRA will issue a groundbreaking statement on its future later today.

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and British Prime Minister Tony Blair believe the Provisionals may endorse Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams’ call in April for the organisation to abandon its armed campaign and pursue its goals purely through democratic means.

Officials also believe the statement will be accompanied by a significant act of IRA arms decommissioning.

Speculation that the statement will surface intensified last night after the British government released one of the IRA’s most infamous bombers, Sean Kelly from jail.

Mr Kelly, who was once sentenced to life imprisonment for killing nine civilians in a fish shop bomb in Belfast in 1993, had his early release licence which was issued under the Good Friday Agreement revoked last month by Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Hain for involvement in terrorist activity.

Mr Kelly was freed from Maghaberry Prison pending the outcome of an appeal to the Sentence Review Commission.

The Northern Ireland Office explained: “We can confirm Sean Kelly was granted temporary release by the Secretary of State on the expectation of the forthcoming IRA statement.”

Democratic Unionist leader the Rev Ian Paisley and Ulster Unionist leader Sir Reg Empey were both outraged.

In a further illustration of the gulf of mistrust between unionists and the IRA, Democratic Unionist deputy leader Peter Robinson last night insisted unionists would need a period time to see if the Provisionals’ promises were for real.

The East Belfast MP said: “While unionists have the most to gain from seeing the end of the IRA, unionists have also the most to lose by rushing any assessment of the true intentions of republicans.

“The assessment must produce a clear signal from the unionist community that it is satisfied terrorism and criminality has ended and the guns have gone.

“The more transparent the IRA is in dealing with these matters the sooner the community can be satisfied.”