New security measures have been introduced at Drumcree in an effort to reduce the number of violent clashes between security forces and Orangemen. In recent nights there have been angry exchanges resulting in a number of people requiring medical attention.
Over the past few evenings, British soldiers have also been deployed at Drumcree Hill. This is the first time troops have been used in support of the RUC since July. The RUC has also increased the number of vehicle checkpoints to prevent protesters bringing in fireworks and other projectiles.
On Tuesday night, the British army used an armoured car and temporary screen to block the road leading to the nationalist Garvaghy road. It also erected a number of arc lights where some 200 protesters had gathered. The latest moves by the security forces are seen as an indication that they intend to adopt stringent measures to curtail the growing protest in the build-up to the Orange rally in Portadown on December 19th.
The newly elected grand secretary of the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland, Mr Denis Watson, said he remained confident that a peaceful solution could be found to the Drumcree impasse.
Mr Watson has been prominent in the Drumcree dispute and was elected on an anti-agreement platform as Assemblyman for Upper Bann.