Dissidents linked to arms find

Police put the arms find on show

Police in Northern Ireland believe weapons found in car on Sunday night belonged to dissident republican paramilitaries.

A man, who is understood to be from west Belfast, is being questioned following the seizure of arms and ammunition on the M1 motorway about 2100 BST.

A quantity of detonators and ammunition, a sub-machine gun and a sawn-off shotgun were recovered by the Royal Ulster Constabulary.

They were discovered in a Vauxhall Cavalier car at the Sprucefield junction near Lisburn, which had been travelling in the direction of Belfast.

Army technical officers were called to the scene as a matter of routine and part of the motorway at the Sprucefield junction, near Lisburn, was closed during the security operation.

The items recovered are being examined by forensic scientists.

Republican demilitarisation calls

Mainstream republicans are concerned that what they see as the slow pace of British demilitarisation could encourage support for dissident republicans opposed to the Good Friday Agreement.

Gerry Adams: "Snails pace of change"

Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams demanded that the army withdraw from Crossmaglen and other areas of south Armagh.

Speaking to the BBC he said: "We have this spin on aspects of demilitarisation, while on the ground people know that what is being done is going at a snails' pace, not at a peace process pace.

"What we need is all the time, in the face change on all of these issues."

However, unionists have said arms finds should be taken into account before security bases are dismantled.

Ulster Unionist trade and enterprise minister Sir Reg Empey said: "The reason why demilitarisation isn't going faster is because of the threat that exists.

"The security forces can't just abandon the field and allow dissident republicans to take the place of the Provisional IRA.

Sir Reg Empey: Army can not just abandon the field

"What reason has anybody to believe that if the army wasn't there, that these arms would not be imported even more freely?"

Leader of the Ulster Democratic Party, which is linked to loyalist paramilitaries the Ulster Defence Association, Gary McMichael, said he feared the arms find suggested that dissident republicans were planning to carry out attacks in Belfast.

Mr McMichael, who is also Lisburn councillor said: "It is vital that the security forced continue to concentrate on eliminating the threat posed by dissident republicans."

Series of attacks

Republican dissidents were blamed for recent bomb attacks on Hammersmith Bridge in London and on the rail track at Ealing Broadway tube station.

Since February of this year there have been a number of incidents in Northern Ireland linked to dissident groups, the Continuity IRA and the Real IRA, who are opposed to the peace process.

The Real IRA was responsible for the Omagh bombing in 1998 in which 29 people were killed.

In February, a Continuity IRA bomb exploded at a hotel in County Fermanagh.

Later that month, a device partially exploded close to sleeping quarters at an army base in County Londonderry and a primed rocket launcher was found close to a security base in County Tyrone.

There was also an explosion at the perimeter fence of an army base in County Londonderry in April.

The Continuity IRA was linked to an attempted mortar bomb attack at a security base in County Fermanagh the same month.

Dissident republicans - possibly the Real IRA - were also blamed for a bomb attack on the Belfast to Dublin railway line in June.

Last month police in the Irish Republic said they were working with other police forces to prevent further attacks by dissidents.