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Another group, the Ulster Defence Association (UDA), said it has started destroying its weapons, too. "The dark days are now behind us and it is time to move on," the UDA said in a statement. "There is no place for guns and violence in the new society we are building. It is time to work for a better future."
The groups, which advocate Northern Ireland remaining a part of Britain, are responsible for almost 1,000 murders of mainly Catholics during the bloody 30-year conflict between Catholics and Protestants in the region.
EU and US welcome the development
European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso hailed the announcement as a "further important step, underpinning the remarkable political progress which has been achieved in recent years.
Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Barroso hails the announcement as an important step "The steps which have been announced today will assist in advancing the transformation sought by all the people of Northern Ireland," he added.
An ongoing, but sometimes rocky, peace process has replaced the decades of violence, and hardline paramilitary groups are among the last remnants of the conflict.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton welcomed the decision by the loyalist groups, saying it underscored the remarkable progress that has taken place in Northern Ireland over the years.
"All parties agree, as the people of Northern Ireland do, that the only way forward is through peace and reconciliation, and not through violence," Clinton said.
Among the local groups to welcome the news were Britain's ministers for Northern Ireland affairs, the largely Irish Catholic pro-independence party Sinn Fein, Catholic leader Cardinal Sean Brady and Irish President Mary McAleese.
msh/dpa/AFP
Editor: Andreas Illmer
(Deutsche Welle)
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