Half the Provisional IRA's army executive is said to have resigned in protest at the direction of the peace process, and more departures are expected in coming weeks, according to several republican sources.
The dissidents, who are understood to have access to IRA arms dumps, are strong in south Armagh, east Tyrone, Tipperary, Dublin and Cork. Sources said that the IRA's first battalion in south Armagh is supporting them.
Senior republicans in Belfast yesterday played down the significance of the resignations. "This is not a split and it should not be exaggerated. There was a personality clash and a few people left," said one.
However, a source claiming to be close to the dissidents claimed that half of the IRA's 12-strong army executive had resigned in addition to the IRA's former chief-of-staff and quartermastergeneral as has been previously reported. This was confirmed by other republican contacts.
The source also claimed that key personnel in the Provisionals' general headquarters staff had re signed, including members in charge of bomb-making and finances. He claimed the resignations followed an extraordinary army convention meeting in the Republic last month.
However, another republican contact said: "It is too early to say who is going where and to put an exact figure on it, but this is a seri ous situation. It could go either way - it could be contained or it could escalate. Things still aren't clear at the moment. There is a state of flux."
The source claiming to be close to the dissidents alleged that they presented a serious threat because they were not just a handful of individuals but senior figures who had the potential to take dozens of grassroots activists with them.
He predicted there would be more resignations over coming weeks and said the current Provisional IRA leadership was under severe pressure. "This thing is moving and moving fast. People will bring people with them."
He refused to discuss the dissidents' plans but said they would be maintaining their independence and would not be joining the Continuity IRA. He would not be drawn on whether they planned to restart attacks on the security forces in the North.
He did not believe there would be a violent confrontation between the dissidents and the Provisional leadership.
Republican sources said the dissidents had substantial support in the Republic and in south Armagh but that Belfast and Derry remained firmly loyal to the present leadership.
Although the former chief-ofstaff who resigned lives in Monaghan, he is originally from Ty rone, and some activisits in east Tyrone are understood to support his position.
The army executive is elected by the general army convention, the IRA's supreme authority which acts as a delegate parliament for republicans. The executive in turn elects the army coun cil. The IRA's rule book, the Green Book, says it shall meet at least once every six months.
The source claiming to be close to the dissidents said the executive had demanded an extraordinary army convention following a declaration by the army council that, although the Mitchell Principles of democracy and non-violence were "unconstitutional", the army council was giving "special dispensation" to its members within Sinn Fein to accept them.
The convention met last month and upheld the army council's position so resignations followed, he said. He claimed the dissidents believed the Sinn Fein leadership was preparing the way for acceptance of an "internal settlement" in the North.
They also feared that demands would be made to decommission some arms at a later date, he ad ded. Other contacts confirmed those were the dissidents' two main concerns. "They think that the ground is being prepared for a sell-out of republicanism," said one.
No Sinn Fein spokesmen were available for comment last night.