Security and republican sources indicated yesterday that the "Real IRA" might announce an end to its campaign of attacks in the North and in London.
The dissident group has been meeting over the past week. It is understood its political wing, the 32-County Sovereignty Committee, held a meeting in Dundalk yesterday in anticipation of a cessation announcement.
However, the Government is not convinced. "The information that we have is the opposite, despite the fact that a number of their key people are out of the way at the moment," one source told The Irish Times last night.
"On the day after the attacks in the United States there was an attack in Derry. There is still some level of management within that organisation - even if it is only operating by cells," he said.
In spite of the hardline statement by Mr David Trimble on sharing power with Sinn FΘin, there was no indication yesterday that the IRA intended to withdraw its offer of last week to engage in discussions with Gen de Chastelain's decommissioning body. It did so last month in the wake of what it described as a negative reaction from the Ulster Unionist leader.
This morning the UUP will lodge a motion in the Northern Ireland Assembly seeking the exclusion of Sinn FΘin from the Executive in the event of there being no IRA decommissioning.
Mr Trimble said at the weekend that he had given Sinn FΘin and the IRA sufficient time to resolve the matter of arms. Under the agreement the IRA and other terrorist organisations were to have completed the decommissioning process by the start of June this year. None of the groups has made any significant move to do so.
The Ulster Unionist leader said he expects the motion to exclude Sinn FΘin's two ministers, Mr Martin McGuinness (Education) and Ms Bairbre de Br·n (Health), to come before the full Assembly within the next two weeks.
The Ulster Unionists also indicated that "within days" of the debate their three remaining Ministers will withdraw from office, following the lead set three months ago by Mr Trimble when he departed from the office of First Minister.
The UUP motion, which is to be lodged this morning with the Assembly's Business Committee, is expected to be defeated as it is not likely to receive SDLP support and thus meet the cross-community standard needed for all Assembly motions.
The SDLP Finance Minister, Mr Mark Durkan, said yesterday it was his party's intention to continue working towards the full implementation of the Belfast Agreement, for which a working Assembly was essential.
"The Ulster Unionists seem to be envisaging some version of the agreement without Sinn FΘin. Sinn FΘin seem to be envisaging some version of the agreement without the Ulster Unionists. We are sticking to the same agreement that has to involve all of us."