Sinn Féin claims - Party must sever all ties with crime

The two-pronged attack on Sinn Féin yesterday by senior ministers alleging that a caucus of the party’s leadership is inter-linked with the IRA, could very well challenge the inherent process of the Good Friday Agreement.

Their indictment corroborates the assertion by Defence Minister Willie O’Dea that the Government no longer believes that Sinn Féin and the IRA are separate entities.

In one radio interview, Justice Minister Michael McDowell unequivocally denounced SF’s Gerry Adams, Martin McGuinness and Martin Ferris as members of the IRA Army Council.