BELFAST (Reuters) - Northern Ireland's Protestant and Roman Catholic leaders, arch-foes during decades of bloodshed, launched a new power-sharing government in the province on Tuesday aiming to put a final end to violence.
Hardline Protestant cleric Ian Paisley and Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness took a pledge of office as first minister and deputy first minister in the government that will have authority over local issues in the province.
The ceremony could help to cement political stability in the province which, since a 1998 peace accord, has largely ended 30 years of sectarian conflict that killed 3,600 people.
"I affirm the terms of the pledge of office," Paisley said, binding himself to a pledge which includes a commitment to non-violence and support for policing in the province....
