Northern Ireland First Minister David Trimble resigned yesterday and said he would return to his post only if the IRA permanently disarmed, a demand backed by a top Roman Catholic politician.
Trimble's departure plunged the Protestant-majority British province into a political vacuum and posed the greatest threat yet to the 1998 Good Friday peace accord aimed at ending centuries of violence.
It coincided with the start of the so-called "marching season," when tensions rise because Protestants stage large parades celebrating past battle victories over Catholics.
There were only minor scuffles in the first march of the season in Belfast on Saturday.
Political analysts said that in resigning, Protestant leader Trimble was gambling he could put pressure on the IRA, which wants union with Ireland, and silence complaints in his party that he was not taking a strong enough line against the group.
Trimble said the Irish Republican Army could no longer be trusted to meet obligations under the accord which included disarmament by all paramilitary forces.
"I am prepared to resume office, but only if we get this settled and we see weapons being put permanently beyond use," Trimble said at a ceremony at Thiepval in France commemorating the World War I Battle of the Somme where many Northern Ireland soldiers died.
He insisted he had not abandoned the peace process, but needed to take drastic action to force the IRA's hand. "I'm stepping down as first minister in order to ensure the agreement is fully implemented," he said.
The IRA has twice opened up arms dumps for international inspection to prove weapons have not been used, but Protestant politicians say that is not enough.
Under the Good Friday accord, the power-sharing government Trimble headed has six weeks to reinstate Trimble or replace him, before the Northern Irish assembly is suspended.
In the event of suspension, Britain could call new provincial elections or re-impose direct rule from London.
Trimble is a joint winner of the Nobel Peace Prize with Catholic politician John Hume for contributions to the landmark deal which ushered in Protestant-Catholic power sharing.
"There's a job still to be done and I'm quite focused on achieving that. It's been my experience if you sit back hoping the IRA will fulfil its obligations, it won't," Trimble said.
Sinn Fein, political ally of the IRA, countered that Trimble's resignation was political brinkmanship, and that its own demands for British troop reductions in the province and a less Protestant police force have not been met.
Northern Ireland Secretary John Reid, the British minister responsible for the province, piled pressure on the IRA.
Speaking at the ceremony in France attended by Trimble, Reid said progress on peace could be made only if the IRA disarmed.
"There is no doubt at the moment that the major concern is that weapons must be put beyond use," he said.
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