Members of the Parachute Regiment are expected to be among units of the British army deployed at Drumcree today in the build-up to tomorrow's parade by the Orange Order in Portadown. Tension is extremely high as the protest by Portadown Orangemen enters its 166th day.
Security forces are expected to move into fields around the Co Armagh church early today to erect wire fencing and barriers along the routes leading from Drumcree to the nationalist Garvaghy Road.
Hundreds of RUC personnel backed up by units of the British army are expected to be deployed in a massive security operation designed to prevent incursions by Orangemen into nationalist areas.
Thousands of Orangemen are expected in Portadown at the weekend. Yesterday an Orange Order source said lodges from many Belfast districts and others from Antrim, Armagh, Down and Tyrone said they would attend. Proximity talks between the Garvaghy Road residents' coalition and representatives of the Orange Order broke up on Wednesday night with each side blaming the other for the failure to reach a compromise solution before tomorrow's parade.
The Orange Order criticised the residents' group, saying: "It is our belief that the representatives from the Garvaghy Road residents' coalition have no desire to achieve a just and lasting solution." It added: "The flexibility shown by the order continues to be met with total intransigence."
The Garvaghy Road residents, however, accused the Orangemen of preventing any form of progress through "its past and future activities" and of continuing to use a "veto over direct talks".
Local Sinn Fein Assembly member Dr Dara O'Hagan said she had asked to meet the First Minister, Mr David Trimble, who is the local MP. "Unfortunately his office informs me that Mr Trimble was not available to discuss the ongoing siege and intimidation in the area."