A wave of hoax bombs and hijackings in Lurgan, Co Armagh, has increased security force fears that elements of the IRA's north Armagh brigade may have defected to the "Real IRA".
There have been reports indicating that the unit was becoming increasingly disenchanted with current Sinn Fein strategy. Hard-liners are known to be opposed to decommissioning in any form, and attacks on the security forces have continued throughout the IRA ceasefire.
There was trouble in Lurgan on Monday night after a search operation by police in the nationalist Killwilkie estate. A car and van were hijacked and placed across the main Dublin to Belfast railway line before being set on fire. Later three masked men, one believed to be armed, hijacked a taxi. A package was placed inside and the driver ordered to take it to the RUC station in the town centre. The device was declared a hoax after a controlled explosion.
The RUC Chief Constable, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, blamed dissident republicans for the Lurgan incidents. He said there was not always a clear distinction between the dissident republican groups but there were indications that the Lurgan incidents were linked to the "Real IRA".