N.Ireland lawmakers pick justice minister in power-sharing landmark, condemn bombing of spy HQ

NIreland picks justice minister in peace landmark

BELFAST, Northern Ireland — Northern Ireland’s Catholic and Protestant lawmakers have appointed their first justice minister — a power-sharing landmark that IRA dissidents protested by bombing the local base of Britain’s spy agency MI5.

David Ford received support in the Northern Ireland Assembly from both the Protestants of the Democratic Unionists and the Catholics of Sinn Fein, who jointly lead the province’s three-year-old administration.

The Democratic Unionists and Sinn Fein spent years negotiating terms for receiving control of Northern Ireland’s justice system from Britain. Their compromise candidate, Ford, leads a small party called Alliance that seeks votes equally from both sides of the community.

Ford denounced Monday’s bombing, in which no one was injured, as pointless.