From Bad To Worse

Funny how peace slips away. Two months ago, Northern Ireland seemed on the brink of a final settlement. Then the Irish Republican Army was accused of carrying out a $50 million bank robbery in Belfast. Finally, last week, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his Irish counterpart, Bertie Ahern, said further progress would be impossible until the I.R.A. winds up its activities — and the group responded with an angry statement saying Blair and Ahern were "making a mess of the peace process. Do not underestimate the seriousness of the situation."

There's no sign the I.R.A. is planning...