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Provisional Irish Republican Army



The 10th report from the Independent Monitoring Commission (IMC), an organisation monitoring activity by paramilitary groups on behalf of the British and Irish governments, prefaced its remarks about IRA activity by saying:

"It remains our absolutely clear view that the PIRA leadership has committed itself to following a peaceful path. It is working to bring the whole organisation fully along with it and has expended considerable effort to refocus the movement in support of its objective. In the last three months this process has involved the further dismantling of PIRA as a military structure."

Its report made the following comments about current IRA activity:

"We are not aware of current terrorist, paramilitary or violent activity sanctioned by the leadership. We have had no indications in the last three months of training, engineering activity, recent recruitment or targeting for the purposes of attack. There has now been a substantial erosion in PIRA’s capacity to return to a military campaign without a significant period of build-up, which in any event we do not believe they have any intentions of doing. The instructions we have previously mentioned to refrain from violence or rioting still stand."[85]

The IMC has come in for criticism (mainly by Republicans) as having been set up outside the terms of the Good Friday Agreement as a sop to Unionism. Sinn Féin MP Conor Murphy summed up the typical republican feeling towards the IMC in February 2006. He said, "The IMC was established outside and in breach of the terms of the Good Friday Agreement. It is a tool for the securocrats and the opponents of change. It is not and never has been independent. It is politically biased, has a clear anti Sinn Féin agenda, and its procedures are flawed."

On 4 October 2006, the IMC ruled that the IRA were no longer a threat.[86]

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P. O'Neill

The IRA traditionally uses a well-known signature in its public statements, which are all issued under the pseudonym of "P. O'Neill" of the "Irish Republican Publicity Bureau, Dublin".[87]

According to Ruairí Ó Brádaigh, it was Seán Mac Stiofáin, as chief of staff of the IRA, who invented the name. However, under his usage, the name was written and pronounced according to Irish orthography and pronunciation as "P. Ó Néill". Ó Brádaigh also maintains that there is no particular significance to the name, thus discounting claims that it is a reference to Sir Phelim O'Neill, the executed leader of the Irish Rebellion of 1641. According to Danny Morrison, the pseudonym "S. O'Neill" was used during the 1940s.[87]

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Infiltration

The IRA has been infiltrated by British Intelligence agents, and in the past some IRA members have been informers. Members suspected of being informants were usually executed after an IRA 'court-martial'. The IRA executed 63 people as informers in the Troubles.

The first large infiltrations of IRA structures occurred in the mid 1970s, around the time of the ceasefire of 1975. Many IRA volunteers were arrested when this ceasefire broke down in 1976. In the 1980s, many more IRA members were imprisoned on the testimony of former IRA members known as "supergrasses" such as Raymond Gilmour and Martin McGartland. Sean O'Callaghan, one of the IRA commanders in the Republic of Ireland, was an informer for the Garda Siochana throughout the 1980s until he was discovered and was put in protective custody in Britain.

In recent years, there have been some high profile allegations of senior IRA figures having been British informers. In May 2003 a number of newspapers named Freddie Scappaticci as the alleged identity of the British Force Research Unit's most senior informer within the Provisional IRA, code-named Stakeknife, who is thought to have been head of the IRA's internal security force, charged with rooting out and executing informers. Scappaticci denies that this is the case and in 2003 failed in a legal bid to force the then Minister for NI, Jane Kennedy, to state he was not an informer.[88] She has refused to do so, and since then Scappaticci has not launched any libel actions against the media making the allegations.

On 16 December 2005, senior Sinn Féin member Denis Donaldson appeared before TV cameras in Dublin and confessed to being a British spy for twenty years.[89] He was expelled from Sinn Féin and was said to have been debriefed by the party.[90] Donaldson was a former Provisional IRA volunteer and subsequently highly placed Sinn Féin party member. One example of the trust put in Donaldson is that he had been entrusted by Gerry Adams with the running of Sinn Féin's operations in the USA in the early 1990s.[91] On 4 April 2006 Donaldson was found shot dead at his retreat near Glenties in County Donegal.[92] When asked whether he felt Donaldson's role as an informer in Sinn Féin was significant, the IRA double agent using the pseudonym "Kevin Fulton" described Donaldson's role as a spy within Sinn Féin as "the tip of the iceberg".[93] The former Force Research Unit and MI5 operative using the pseudonym "Martin Ingram" concurs with "Kevin Fulton" and has even gone so far as to allege that Gerry Adams knew that Donaldson was an agent.Ingram was described in court as a walter mitty type character, Ingram has also claimed that Martin McGuinness is a British agent. As evidence for this claim he alleges that McGuinness was involved in the death of IRA volunteer and FRU agent Frank Hegarty in May 1986.[94] McGuinness has denied any involvement in the Hegarty case and brushed off allegations that he is a spy.[95] He also brushed off the most recent allegations made by Ingram in the Sunday World newspaper on 28 May 2006.[96]

On 8 February 2008 Roy McShane was taken into police protection after being unmasked as an informer. McShane, a former IRA member, had been Gerry Adams' personal driver for many years. Adams said he was "too philosophical" to feel betrayed.[97]

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See also

[

References

  1. ^ Moloney, Ed (2002). A Secret History of the IRA. Penguin Books, p. xiv. ISBN 0-141-01041-X. 
  2. ^ Henry McDonald (13 February 2005). Grieving sisters square up to IRA. The Observer. Retrieved on 2007-07-20.
  3. ^ Coogan, Tim Pat (1987). The IRA. Fontana Books, 681-682. ISBN 000636943X. 
  4. ^ Éire Nua policy statement
  5. ^ a b Home Office - Proscribed Terror Groups — Home Office website, retrieved 11 May 2007
  6. ^ McDowell insists IRA will remain illegal. RTÉ (28 August 2005). Retrieved on 2007-05-18.
  7. ^ Full text: IRA statement. The Guardian (28 July 2005). Retrieved on 2007-03-17.
  8. ^ Army paper says IRA not defeated
  9. ^ Mallie, Bishop p136
  10. ^ Robert White, Ruairi O Bradaigh, the Life and Politics of an Irish Revolutionary, 2006, Indiana University Press.
  11. ^ Mallie, Bishop p141.
  12. ^ Patrick Bishop and Eamonn Mallie, The Provisional IRA.
  13. ^ Taylor, Peter (1997). Provos The IRA & Sinn Féin. Bloomsbury Publishing, p. 67. ISBN 0-7475-3818-2. 
  14. ^ English, Richard (2003). Armed Struggle: The History of the IRA. Pan Books, p. 119. ISBN 0-330-49388-4. 
  15. ^ English, pp. 111-113.
  16. ^ English, p. 106.
  17. ^ Taylor, pp. 289-291.
  18. ^ Robin Sheeran (21 January 2006). Northern Ireland: The SDLP and the House of Lords. BBC. Retrieved on 2007-03-27.
  19. ^ Moloney, p. 80.
  20. ^ Taylor, pp. 104-105
  21. ^ a b O'Brien, Brendan (1999). The Long War: The IRA and Sinn Féin. O'Brien Press, p. 158. ISBN 0-86278-606-1. 
  22. ^ English, pp. 114-115
  23. ^ English, p. 43
  24. ^ Moloney, pp. 155-160
  25. ^ O'Brien p.158
  26. ^ Moloney, p103
  27. ^ O'Brien page 161
  28. ^ Bowyer Bell Page 437
  29. ^ O'Brien, p.161
  30. ^ Moloney, p.377
  31. ^ O'Brien p158
  32. ^ (Taylor p139)
  33. ^ Taylor, Peter (2001). Brits. Bloomsbury Publishing, pp. 184-185. ISBN 0-7475-5806-X. 
  34. ^ (Taylor p156)
  35. ^ (O'Brien p128)
  36. ^ (cited in O'Brien p 23)
  37. ^ (O'Brien p127)
  38. ^ (Moloney p432)
  39. ^ (Taylor p156)
  40. ^ English, pp.134-135
  41. ^ Crosstabulations (two-way tables). CAIN. Retrieved on 2007-03-17.
  42. ^ (Moloney p472)
  43. ^ IRA guns: The list of weapons. BBC (26 September 2005). Retrieved on 2007-03-26.
  44. ^ Colonel al-Gaddafi is known to have given the British Government a detailed inventory of weapons he gave to the IRA in the 1970s and 1980s, this list was handed to British intelligence in 1995. See Bowyer Bell Page 578
  45. ^ House of Commons Hansard Debates for 8 Feb 2006 (pt 26). House of Commons (8 February 2006). Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
  46. ^ 10th Report of the IMC Page 15 April 2006, available here.
  47. ^ This feeling, that the RUC, B-Specials, UDR, British Army and other arms of the Governmental apparatus in Northern Ireland were biased against the Nationalist & Roman Catholic members of the community was not new. It predates the current 'Troubles' and predates organisations like the "Ulster Defence Volunteers" (Home guard) of WW2 who were also widely considered sectarian. For details see Robert Fisk, In Time of War (Gill & Macmillan) 1983 P.189.
  48. ^ Punishment beatings: A grip of fear. BBC (25 January 1999). Retrieved on 2007-05-01.
  49. ^ Critics of the Provisional IRA in the Unionist orientated media and political parties such as the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) maintain that the IRA itself was involved in "antisocial behaviour" and operated a policy of kneecapping drug dealers not under its control, or not paying it protection money. This was consistently rejected by the IRA as a fantasy.
  50. ^ IRA "collusion" inquiry launched, BBC News
  51. ^ Controversy over republican's murder. BBC (17 October 2000). Retrieved on 2007-03-17.
  52. ^ IRA denies murdering dissident. BBC (18 October 2000). Retrieved on 2007-03-17.
  53. ^ Barry O'Kelly (18 January 2004). McDowell takes stock. The Sunday Business Post. Retrieved on 2007-03-09.
  54. ^ These accusations were particularly prevalent during the Miami Showband Massacre, the 1980s Stalker Shoot to kill inquiry, the assassination of Pat Finucane, and the Brian Nelson/Force Research Unit controversy. During these episodes Republicans were quick to highlight overlap of personnel between loyalist paramilitary organisations and arms of the British security services.
  55. ^ Lost Lives (2004. Ed's David McKitrick, Seamus Kelters, Brian Feeney, Chris Thornton, David McVea)
  56. ^ (O'Brien p135)
  57. ^ (Lost Lives p1531)
  58. ^ (cited in O'Brien, Long War p26)
  59. ^ (Mallie, Bishop p12)
  60. ^ MP denies 'IRA freedom fighters' claim. BBC (30 December 2001). Retrieved on 2007-06-24.
  61. ^ Recently released (3 May 2006) British Government documents show that overlapping membership between British Army units like the Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) and loyalist paramilitary groups was a wider problem than a "few bad apples" as was often claimed. The documents include a report titled "Subversion in the UDR" which details the problem. In 1973; an estimated 5–15% of UDR soldiers were directly linked to loyalist paramilitary groups, it was believed that the "best single source of weapons, and the only significant source of modern weapons, for Protestant extremist groups was the UDR", it was feared UDR troops were loyal to "Ulster" alone rather than to "Her Majesty's Government", the British Government knew that UDR weapons were being used in the assassination and attempted assassination of Roman Catholic civilians by loyalist paramilitaries. May 2, 2006 edition of the Irish News available here.
  62. ^ Gerry Adam's 2006 Easter Message was that "unfinished business" remains, available here. "But in truth The Proclamation is also unfinished business. It is unfinished business which the vast majority of the Irish people want to see brought to completion."
  63. ^ House of Commons Hansard Debates for 30 Oct 2002 (pt 8). House of Commons (30 October 2002). Retrieved on 2007-03-17.
  64. ^ (O'Brien p161)
  65. ^ Parliamentary Debates (Official Report - Unrevised) Dáil Éireann Thursday, 23 June 2005 - Page 1
  66. ^ (Mallie, Bishop p12)
  67. ^ Parliamentary Debates (Official Report - Unrevised) Dáil Éireann Thursday, 23 June 2005 - Page 1
  68. ^ (O'Brien p115)
  69. ^ (O'Brien p198)
  70. ^ (O'Brien p196)
  71. ^ (Coogan p284)
  72. ^ (Mallie, Bishop p444)
  73. ^ (O'Brien p199)
  74. ^ Bowyer Bell, J. (1997). The Secret Army: The IRA. Transaction Publishers, pp. 556-571. ISBN 1560009012
  75. ^ John O'Sullivan (15 February 2005). IThe Padre Pio. National Review. Retrieved on 2007-04-21.
  76. ^ John Lloyd (28 October 2002). Sinn Féin could win the peace. New Statesman. Retrieved on 2007-04-21.
  77. ^ A Chronology of the Conflict - 1982. CAIN. Retrieved on 2007-03-17.
  78. ^ Mitrokhin, Vasili (2000). The Sword and the Shield: The Mitrokhin Archive and the Secret History of the KGB. Basic Books, p. 384. ISBN 0465003125. 
  79. ^ J. Michael Waller (15 May 1996). Russia Reform Monitor No. 137. American Foreign Policy Council. Retrieved on 2007-03-26.
  80. ^ Deborah Michaels (14 May 1996). No. 93, Part II. Open Media Research Institute. Retrieved on 2007-03-26.
  81. ^ House International Relations Committee (24 April 2002). Report. U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved on 2007-03-17.
  82. ^ Full text: IRA statement. The Guardian (28 July 2005). Retrieved on 2007-03-17.
  83. ^ Maintaining belief in peace aided N. Ireland transformation By Kevin Cullen, The Boston Globe, 27 September 2005.
  84. ^ Weapons witnesses 'IRA-nominated'. BBC (27 September 2005). Retrieved on 2007-03-17.
  85. ^ Tenth report of the Independent Monitoring Commission April 2006 available in PDF here NOTE: the IMC report is issued every six months.
  86. ^ Matt Weaver (4 October 2006). Blair: Northern Ireland final settlement within reach. The Guardian. Retrieved on 2007-05-18.
  87. ^ a b Who is P O'Neill? — BBC News article, 22 September 2005.
  88. ^ Ted Oliver (19 August 2003). 'Stakeknife' loses bid to quash spy claim. The Guardian. Retrieved on 2007-03-17.
  89. ^ Sinn Féin man admits he was agent. BBC (16 December 2005). Retrieved on 2007-03-26.
  90. ^ Suzanne Breen (26 March 2006). Denis Donaldson — squalid living after a life of lies. Sunday Tribune. Retrieved on 2007-03-26.
  91. ^ Suzanne Breen (9 April 2006). No tears over Denis Donaldson. Sunday Tribune. Retrieved on 2007-03-26.
  92. ^ Sinn Féin British agent shot dead. BBC (4 April 2006). Retrieved on 2007-03-26.
  93. ^ "Kevin Fulton" (not his real name) made the comments on a BBC News 24 interview 10 April 2006, Realmedia available here or available on googlevideo here
  94. ^ Ingram claims that Hegarty was an agent he ran as part of his duties working in the Force Research Unit.
  95. ^ For a discussion of the issue, listen to the Radio Free Éireann interview Ingram gave- see links. Also see this summary of the allegations against McGuinness here.
  96. ^ See synopsis of allegations available here.
  97. ^ Irish Times 11 February 2008, p.8

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Sources

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External links

v • d • e
Irish armed groups using the name Irish Republican Army

Irish Republican Army (Army of the Irish Republic) (1919–1922)

Organisations known by the name in later years:

Irish Republican Army (1922–1969) · Official IRA (1969–present) · Provisional IRA (1969–present) ·
Continuity IRA (1986–present) · Real IRA (1997–present)



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