Irish political party Sinn Fein is not run by its former paramilitary wing the Irish Republican Army despite allegations the terrorist group was still operating in secret, party leader Gerry Adams said on Wednesday.
His comments come after a report found the main republican and unionist groups in Northern Ireland including the IRA still existed, raising questions over their continuing role.
"No one can control Sinn Fein but the Sinn Fein membership," said party leader Gerry Adams in a televised interview on Wednesday evening.
"There is a suggestion Sinn Fein is controlled by some outside body or group. We are not," he told national broadcaster RTE.
Sinn Fein was the political wing of the IRA during The Troubles, 30 years of violence in which 3,500 people died, and which was largely ended by a 1998 peace deal.
The report, conducted by police and British domestic security service MI5, suggested the IRA's leadership, known as the Army Council, still oversaw both the IRA and Sinn Fein.
"There is no space for armed groups. There is no space for anything other than peaceful and democratic ways of advancing political and democratic objectives," Adams added.
Adams rejected the findings of the report and said the IRA no longer exists, describing elements of the report as "mischief-making" being exploited by political opponents.
Sinn Fein is currently in a power-sharing government in Northern Ireland with Unionists, loyal to Britain.
It is also a leading opposition party in the Republic of Ireland and is expected to make gains in next spring's general election.
The IRA, who fought to drive Britain out of Northern Ireland, was responsible for 1771 murders between 1969 and 1998.
In 2005, it said it had put its arms beyond use and had stood down as part of the peace process.
But dissident groups who reject the 1998 peace deal have carried out between 15 and 40 terrorist attacks in Northern Ireland each year since 2000, mainly directed at police officers, the report said.
A separate report by Irish police this week concluded some former IRA members remain criminally active, "particularly in organised crime."
Adams said his commitment to the peace process put his life in danger from dissident republican paramilitary groups, saying his home was "regularly subject to bomb alerts".
Irish political party Sinn Fein is not run by its former paramilitary wing the Irish Republican Army despite allegations the terrorist group was still operating in secret, party leader Gerry Adams said on Wednesday.
His comments come after a report found the main republican and unionist groups in Northern Ireland including the IRA still existed, raising questions over their continuing role.
“No one can control Sinn Fein but the Sinn Fein membership,” said party leader Gerry Adams in a televised interview on Wednesday evening.
“There is a suggestion Sinn Fein is controlled by some outside body or group. We are not,” he told national broadcaster RTE.
Sinn Fein was the political wing of the IRA during The Troubles, 30 years of violence in which 3,500 people died, and which was largely ended by a 1998 peace deal.
The report, conducted by police and British domestic security service MI5, suggested the IRA’s leadership, known as the Army Council, still oversaw both the IRA and Sinn Fein.
“There is no space for armed groups. There is no space for anything other than peaceful and democratic ways of advancing political and democratic objectives,” Adams added.
Adams rejected the findings of the report and said the IRA no longer exists, describing elements of the report as “mischief-making” being exploited by political opponents.
Sinn Fein is currently in a power-sharing government in Northern Ireland with Unionists, loyal to Britain.
It is also a leading opposition party in the Republic of Ireland and is expected to make gains in next spring’s general election.
The IRA, who fought to drive Britain out of Northern Ireland, was responsible for 1771 murders between 1969 and 1998.
In 2005, it said it had put its arms beyond use and had stood down as part of the peace process.
But dissident groups who reject the 1998 peace deal have carried out between 15 and 40 terrorist attacks in Northern Ireland each year since 2000, mainly directed at police officers, the report said.
A separate report by Irish police this week concluded some former IRA members remain criminally active, “particularly in organised crime.”
Adams said his commitment to the peace process put his life in danger from dissident republican paramilitary groups, saying his home was “regularly subject to bomb alerts”.
