POLICE in Northern Ireland were last night questioning a number of men in connection with the murder of a Protestant outside his home.

Mr Trevor Deeney, 34, was shot dead in front of his wife in the driveway of their home in the Waterside area of Londonderry late on Tuesday night.

He had been warned by the RUC that he had been on a death list, consisting of 30 Protestant men, of the Irish National Liberation Army.

The mayor, Councillor Martin Bradley, urged politicians to reach agreement at Stormont today ''so that Mr Deeney's name goes down in history as the last victim of the Troubles in Northern Ireland''.

Unionist politicians moved quickly to appeal for calm following the shooting, as fears grew that loyalist paramilitaries may stage an attack in retaliation.

Mr Deeney had been driven home by his wife from his job at a car component plant on the outskirts of the city when gunmen attacked. He was sitting in his car when they opened fire, the bullets narrowly missing Mrs Deeney.

Despite being shot at point blank range, Mr Deeney was still conscious when the ambulance arrived. However, he died a short time later at Altnageluin Hospital.

The hardline INLA, which is not adhering to any ceasefire, said it was responsible for the shooting. They claimed Mr Deeney had been a leading member of the Loyalist Volunteer Force.

Mr Bradley said: ''People throughout the city are totally disgusted at what happened here, not just at what happened but also given the timing of the event.

''It is sad to see at this stage when nearly everyone in Northern Ireland wants peace and wants to get on with their lives, that there are still those among us who do not want peace no matter what agreement is done.''

Gary McMichael, of the Unionist Democratic Party, urged the community to ''hold its nerve''. He said: ''People who oppose the peace process want to maximise their efforts to destroy the country.''

Mr Deeney, the step-father of four children, was the brother of Jeffrey Deeney, who is serving a life sentence for his part in the Rising Sun bar massacre, when Ulster Freedom Fighters shot seven people dead at Greysteel, County Londonderry, in 1993.

Northern Ireland Secretary Mo Mowlam described the shooting as ''cowardly and callous''.

Mr David Trimble, leader of the Ulster Unionists, also condemned the murder. ''You do not need to comment on or underline the character of the people who perpetrated that murder and the significance of an event like that at a time like this.''

The RUC divisional commander Superintendent Alan Hayes said the shooting was the ''cold-blooded sectarian murder of a working man returning home from work'' and said it should be condemned by everyone in Northern Ireland.

It was the INLA that provoked the current round of killings in Northern Ireland with the murder within the Maze prison of LVF leader Billy ''King Rat'' Wright. He was shot in the back by INLA prisoners who had smuggled in firearms.

The INLA went on to kill a leading figure in the Ulster Defence Association and a retired policeman as he shopped in Armagh.

Mayor Bradley said last night: ''The political parties now en-gaged in the talks must redouble their efforts to ensure there is an agreement because you have to ask the question: what is the alternative?

''We saw what the alternative is on Tuesday night.''