Adams gets dissident death threat

Sinn Fein believes the threats follow internal discussions on policing

Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams has received a warning from police about a fresh attack by dissident republicans.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland told him dissidents had intended to shoot him, but called off their attack because of his security arrangements.

The threats follow internal party discussions on Sinn Fein's strategy on policing.

However, Mr Adams accused the hardliners of using the policing issue as an excuse.

Speaking at Stormont on Monday, he said it was clear that certain elements were opposed to Sinn Fein's peace strategy.

"The issue of policing is an excuse which is being used and exploited by them," he said.

"It is clearly an important issue, but it is being manipulated as part of the wider hostility to Sinn Fein's peace strategy."

Policing

Mr Adams said the warning indicated that dissident republicans had been planning to shoot him, but were deterred by enhanced security arrangements taken by Sinn Fein once it was alerted to the possibility of an attack.

Disaffected members of the Provisional movement and dissidents in the Real IRA, Continuity IRA and other republican organisations oppose any move by Sinn Fein to endorse publicly the PSNI.

However, Democratic Unionists have made Sinn Fein support for the police a pre-requisite for a new power sharing government next March.

Last month, Sinn Fein said it had evidence that dissidents were planning to attack senior members of the party including Mr Adams, Gerry Kelly and Martin McGuinness.

A police spokeswoman said it was not policy to comment on the security of individuals.

Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Hain has condemned the threat against Mr Adams.

Any threat had to be taken seriously, he said, but it would have no influence on the unified desire to have Stormont back to work and made accountable to local people.

Ulster Unionist party deputy leader Danny Kennedy said the time had come for Sinn Fein to deal with the issue of policing so that party members could receive police help to deal with such threats.

"The right thing to do for the republican leadership is to give their full unqualified support to the PSNI, the lawful authorities.

"They can then expect the full cover and reasonable support of the lawful institutions."

Mr Kennedy said it was not a question of not accepting that threats had been made, it was about how Sinn Fein should deal with those threats.