Area where the terrorists hold all the aces

BANDIT territory. The perfect terrain for a terrorist and the most difficult area to police. This is the way gardai describe the area where a weekend search uncovered an IRA training camp.

The townland of Knockatallon has a population of about loo people. One of its largest structures is a monument to Seamus McElwain, a 26 year old IRA man shot by British soldiers at nearby Roslea in Fermanagh in 1986. Yesterday the Tricolour flew at half mast and two laurel wreaths had been laid at the monument.

Gardai made a number of significant arms finds in the area before the 1994 IRA ceasefire. In one four week period they found 14 arms caches, ranging from explosives to firearms, in houses and on open ground.

"Most of the firearms are concealed outside in plastic containers now", one Garda source said. "The finds have pushed these people out into the likes of the woods. It is difficult terrain to police and ideal terrain from a terrorist point of view."

In 1993 the gardai uncovered a major operation for manufacturing mortar parts at Knockatallon Cross.

However, despite the high number of arms finds, no one has been charged.

"The law in relation to possession is most difficult. The arms generally have to be found literally in their possession."

Gardai believe that the motorcycle found in the area recently, stolen from UCD in early January, was not connected to the training camp, but was intended for use in an armed robbery.

With military precision, the firing range and galvanised hut had been heavily camouflaged. There was no indication that the IRA had been testing any new weapons in the area.

Instead, there were remains of the familiar IRA arsenal of AK47s, shoulder held mortars normally used against mobile units of the security forces in Northern Ireland and the "barrack buster" mortars used against RUC and British army bases.

Two weeks ago the RUC uncovered mortar parts on the Northern side of the Border, gardai said. And the Monaghan gardai are in daily contact with their RUC counterparts.

Asked about IRA activity in the area, one garda said that there had been no IRA robberies or attacks in the locality.

And the results of the weapon manufacturing, stooge and training were more likely to be seen elsewhere.

"Training is an ongoing process. We have no way of seeing how"

much of this is ongoing. The training that went on here is part of how well they execute their tasks elsewhere."