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Latest Irish violence a Protestant turf war
By PATRICK RUCKER © St. Petersburg Times, published August 25, 2000 BELFAST, Northern Ireland -- Differences of politics and religion once fueled violence in Northern Ireland, but now Protestants are facing Protestants in a new battle over pride, territory and a burgeoning drug trade. The fresh season of bloodletting has shown that Northern Ireland may still face some obstacles on the way to reaching a peaceful society. The latest spate of violence is centered around Belfast's Protestant heartland of the Shankill Road and Protestant terrorist kingpin Johnny "Mad Dog" Adair. Feuding between Adair's terror faction, the Ulster Freedom Fighters, and the other main Protestant terror group, the Ulster Volunteer Force, has led to eight killings since the beginning of the year. Tensions between the two groups had been simmering for months, but widespread violence erupted after the UVF assassinated two Shankill-area Protestants earlier this week. Late Wednesday a third man was gunned down in a killing linked to the feud. The Northern Ireland secretary, Peter Mandelson, accused Adair of being involved in the "commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism" and ordered his arrest. "I think the feud will intensify, and I'd expect attacks against our party and the UVF to continue," says Billy Hutchinson, whose Progressive Unionist Party has links with the UVF. John White, chairman of the Ulster Democratic Party, a political grouping linked to Adair's UFF, agreed that more violence was likely. Two years ago, both Protestant factions endorsed the Good Friday peace agreement. Now Protestant families living along the Shankill Road are abandoning their homes while the two groups settle their vendetta. For the first time in two years, British troops began patrolling the Shankill Road and have so far successfully isolated the unrest. The province's peace process, too, has weathered the violence, with all the main political forces unanimously condemning what Mandelson called "squalid, murderous, gang warfare." For over 25 years, Protestant terror groups have battled to defeat the Irish Republican Army and preserve Northern Ireland's link with the United Kingdom. Through extortion, assassination and racketeering, the groups controlled their own Protestant communities while laying siege to Northern Ireland Catholics. During the early '90s, Adair led the UFF's most brutal murder gang, which was responsible for more than 70 killings. Adair distinguished himself with ruthlessness and daring, openly scouting Catholic neighborhoods for possible targets. Adair escaped numerous IRA assassination attempts and criminal prosecutions for years until he was sentenced in 1995 to 16 years for directing terrorism. Last September Adair was granted early release from prison under terms of the Good Friday agreement. Back on the streets, Adair immediately began to reassert himself on the Shankill Road and, according to police, to take control of the local drug trade. Since Adair's release, his gang has imposed its predominance in the Shankill Road area. UFF wall murals have mushroomed, and there have been a number of high-profile "shows of force" where masked UFF gunmen have brandished weapons or stopped traffic at makeshift roadblocks -- all to the chagrin of the rival UVF. Most worrying for security forces, Adair has built an alliance with the breakaway Loyalist Volunteer Force, whose past leader, Billy "King Rat" Wright, was shot dead in Maze prison in 1998. Adair is trying to fill Billy Wright's shoes, officials fear, and create a new league of disaffected loyalists to join his drug and terror franchise. Mandelson said he hopes Adair's arrest will allow the warring factions to make peace, an unlikely outcome in the short term since both sides are still calling for vengeance.
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From the Times wire desk
From the AP |
