Sinn Féin minister Mr Martin McGuinness told senior Irish-American politicians he was angry when he learned about the arrests of three republicans in Colombia, it emerged today.
Democratic senator and senior Irish-American politician Mr Chris Dodd revealed in Washington that Mr McGuinness told him of his anger over the arrests of Mr Martin McCauley, Mr James Monaghan and Sinn Féin activist Mr Niall Connolly on suspicion of training Marxist Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) rebels.
Stating his belief there should not be public hearings by a Congressional committee in Washington into the IRA's links with Colombian rebels, the senator said: "We have had discussions about it [the arrests] and I don't see any reason at this point for conducting hearings.
"I'll just repeat to you what Martin McGuinness said to me," said Mr Dodd, chairman of the US Senate's Foreign Relations Committee on Central and South America. He said: 'As angry you are about this, you can't get as angry as I was to hear about it'. "I think that sort of satisfies many of us that more was made of it than was the case. It was a cause of some concern obviously and Mr McGuinness seemed to appreciate that, but I see no reason to conducting hearings on it".
Mr Dodd's comments were at odds with a fellow Democrat on the House of Representatives' International Relations Committee, which has been considering holding public hearings.
After a meeting with Ulster Unionist leader Mr David Trimble, Congressman Mr William Dellahunt said he was determined to get to the truth of what the three Irishmen were doing in Colombia when they were arrested last August and the links between republicans and FARC rebels.
PA