Police Rearrest Paroled Militant

Police in Belfast rearrested notorious militant Johnny “Mad Dog” Adair as Britain moved to suppress rising violence among Northern Ireland’s pro-British gangs. In response, supporters of Adair’s outlawed Ulster Defense Assn. attacked an office, business and several homes linked to a rival faction, police said. The rearrest came 11 months after Adair, 36, was paroled from prison under terms of Northern Ireland’s 1998 peace accord--and a day after two Protestant militants were gunned down in a vicious feud involving him. Britain’s minister responsible for the province, Peter Mandelson, made the decision after consulting the commanders of Northern Ireland’s police force and British army garrison, who both said Adair played a central role in the recent violence.