The deadline for saving the Good Friday Accord is Aug. 12, and in the face of a take-it-or-leave-it proposal from Britain and Ireland, the IRA announced a method to decommission its weapons. The issue of disarmament is the principal obstacle to preserving the power sharing arrangement in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Protestants have resisted IRA promises and want to see action, but this step offers hope that the peace process will continue. If Protestants do not accept this breakthrough and the assembly collapses, unrest in parts of Belfast and other cities is likely.
