"... the sometimes ..."

[Odessa Dawn]

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"But the sometimes violent protests in Amman and elsewhere this week have also included young men from poor areas, and for the first time a refrain from protests elsewhere in the Arab world -- "The People Want the Downfall of the Regime" -- has been heard."
More: Analysis: Jordan's King Abdullah faces crisis - CNN.com

Can the definite article the occur before the adverb sometimes? Does sometimes right here mean sometime as a result it functions as an adjective?
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[5jj]

Can the definite article the occur before the adverb sometimes?​

Yes

Does

sometimes right here mean sometime as a result it functions as an adjective?

'The sometimes violent protests' means 'the protests which are sometimes violent'. It is an adverb modifying 'violent'.
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