Northern Ireland's Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness will be a special guest of the Queen during a state banquet at Windsor Castle.
The Sinn Fein politician, who is also a former IRA commander, will attend as part of events organised for the official visit to the UK by Irish president Michael D Higgins next week. Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams appealed to republicans in Northern Ireland "to view this positively" in the interests of unity and peace.
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