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IRA move spurs efforts on peace deal
IRA, which fought a three-decade campaign against British rule until a 1997 ceasefire, said it would let one Catholic and one Protestant church representative, along with the international body, witness decommissioning. It gave no timetable but The Irish Times quoted government sources as saying Ireland was hopeful the IRA's entire arsenal, which it said had been centralised in a number of munitions dumps, could be destroyed by the end of August. The Irish Times said there were "strong indications" the first act of decommissioning could be days away. As well as proving it has got rid of its arms, the IRA will need to show that its members have severed links to the beatings and thefts that have tarnished its reputation as Catholic guardians. An independent ceasefire watchdog will help to monitor progress. Britain to 'normalize' the province Following the IRA move, Britain committed to resuming efforts to "normalize" the province. The SDLP urged Britain to make good on commitments to remove the army from police stations in which it still operates and remove army watchtowers from border areas. On Friday Britain began demolishing one of its Northern Ireland army watchtowers - symbols of its military presence. The move came as part of commitments by Britain and Ireland to fulfil
promises delayed by the Irish Republican Army's past failure to disarm and as
work resumed on securing a political deal that would restore suspended regional
government.
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