Sinn Fein not to blame for raid

A Belfast priest who has been involved in the Irish peace process for a long time believes that it is wrong to blame Sinn Fein for the Northern Bank raid:

BELFAST priest Fr Alex Reid, who helped bring about the Good Friday Agreement, says Sinn Fein should not be held responsible for the apparent involvement of the IRA in the Northern Bank robbery.

The Redemptorist priest says it is not yet clear exactly who was behind the €38m hold-up.

"The IRA denies it, and what is certain is that they have always told the truth," he said in an interview in a Spanish newspaper.

Condemning the republican movement for what may have been "a few corrupt individuals linked to the IRA" is like blaming the entire Catholic Church for the actions of some paedophile priests, he insisted.

Finally a voice of reason speaks up.