Dissident Irish Republican campaign

Dissident Irish republican campaign Political map of Ireland Date 1998–present (18 years) Location Northern Ireland Occasional violence in the Republic of Ireland and England Status Ongoing Belligerents United Kingdom Police Service of Northern Ireland (since 2001) Royal Ulster Constabulary (until 2001) British Army (until 2007) Republic of Ireland Garda Síochána Dissident Republican paramilitaries INLA (from 1997 -1998) Real IRA Continuity IRA IRLA (since 2006) Óglaigh na hÉireann (since 2009) Dissident Loyalist paramilitaries Orange Volunteers (since July 1998) Red Hand Defenders (since September 1998) Real Ulster Freedom Fighters (since 2007) Strength PSNI: 7,200 Garda Síochána 16,328 Real IRA: 250-300 Continuity IRA: 200 (less than fifty of whom are considered "hardcore members") Óglaigh na hÉireann: ~50 Orange Volunteers: ~25 *Red Hand Defenders: Unknown *Real Ulster Freedom Fighters: ~50 Casualties and losses British Army: 2 killed PSNI: 2 killed RUC: 1 killed NIPS: 2 killed Total: 8 killed Total: 32 killed Civilian deaths: 105 (including suspected or alleged informers and drug dealers) Total killed: 156 (as of July 2016) Total injured: 420+ (as of July 2016)

Since the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) called a ceasefire and ended its armed campaign in 1997, breakaway groups opposed to the ceasefire ("dissident Irish republicans") have continued a low-level^[1][2] armed campaign against the British security forces in Northern Ireland. The main paramilitaries involved are the Real IRA, Continuity IRA and Óglaigh na hÉireann. They have targeted the British Army and Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI, successor of the Royal Ulster Constabulary) in gun and bomb attacks, as well as with mortars and rockets. They have also carried out bombings that are meant to cause disruption. However, their campaign has not been as intensive as the Provisional IRA's.

In 2007, the British government declared the end of Operation Banner, ending the four-decade long deployment of the British Army in Northern Ireland. As a result, the PSNI has since been the main target of attacks, however British Armed Forces stationed in Northern Ireland are still targeted.

The dissident republican campaign began towards the end of the Troubles, a 30-year period of conflict in Northern Ireland that resulted in over 3,500 deaths. The Good Friday Agreement of May 1998 is generally seen as marking the end of the Troubles. Like the Provisional IRA, the main Ulster loyalist paramilitaries have also been on ceasefire. However, dissident (anti-ceasefire) loyalists have continued to engage in terrorist actions and violence also; although it is mostly unrelated to the republican campaign. To date, two British soldiers, two PSNI officers and two Prison Service guard have been killed as part of the republican campaign. At least 105 civilians have also been killed by republican and loyalist paramilitaries, 29 of whom died in the Omagh bombing carried out by the Real IRA.

For a timeline of the campaign, see the timelines of Real IRA actions, Continuity IRA actions and Óglaigh na hÉireann actions.

Background

Since the 1169 invasion of Ireland by Norman knights at the request of ousted King of Leinster Dermot MacMurrough, Ireland has, in part or in whole, been under English, and later British, administration. Rebellions against rule from Great Britain were unsuccessful until 1919–1921's Anglo-Irish War, when the original Irish Republican Army (IRA) succeeded in removing 26 of Ireland's 32 counties from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland as the Irish Free State. Although previously, the offer of Irish Home rule was agreed in the third Home Rule Bill, implementation was suspended by violent opposition in Ulster and the forming of the UVF, and later by the outbreak of the First World War. Following the partition of Ireland by the Crown, the remaining six counties, located in the province of Ulster, became Northern Ireland and remained a part of the renamed United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

A civil war followed in the new southern state, and the IRA split for the first time, into the Irish National Army—the war's victor, which became the army of the Free State—and the Anti-Treaty IRA, which was opposed to the treaty that had partitioned Ireland into two states.

The IRA ceased to be a significant force following its defeat in the Civil War, and it was not until a further split, into the Official IRA and Provisional IRA (PIRA) following the 1969 Northern Ireland riots, that a group calling itself the Irish Republican Army—the Provisional IRA—would again come to prove a significant military force. As a belligerent in what would come to be known as the Troubles, the PIRA waged an armed campaign against the British state that lasted until 1997 and claimed around 1800 lives.

The PIRA called an indefinite ceasefire in 1997 and decommissioned its arms in 2005 in accordance with the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, but a number of hardline splinter groups, known as dissident republicans, have vowed to continue using "armed struggle" to achieve the republican aim of a united Ireland.

The campaign

Beginning of the campaign

In August 1994, the Provisional IRA called a ceasefire. In January 1996 the Continuity IRA announced its existence and vowed to continue the armed campaign against British rule in Northern Ireland. A month later, the Provisional IRA called-off its ceasefire because of its dissatisfaction with the state of the peace negotiations. On 13 July, the CIRA detonated a car bomb outside Kilyhelvin Hotel in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh. The blast caused serious damage and injured 17 people as they were being evacuated from the hotel.^[3] Over the following year it planted another three cars bombs in Belfast, Derry and Fermanagh, but all were defused by the British Army. The Provisional IRA called a second ceasefire in July 1997. On 16 September the CIRA detonated a van bomb outside the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) base in Markethill. The bombing happened a day after Sinn Féin joined the political negotiations which led to the Good Friday Agreement.^[4]

In November 1997, high-ranking Provisional IRA members who opposed the ceasefire formed a breakaway group that would become known as the Real IRA. During the first half of 1998 the Real IRA and Continuity IRA launched a string of car bomb and mortar attacks on RUC bases. There were car bombings in Moira on 20 February and in Portadown on 23 February.^[5] There was a mortar attack on Armagh RUC base on 10 March, and on two British Army bases in South Armagh on 24 March.^[6] On 10 April, after two years of intensive negotiations, the Belfast "Good Friday" Agreement was signed.^[5] Further mortars were launched at RUC bases in Belfast on 4 May and Belleek on 9 May, but missed their targets.^[5] On 22 May, referendums on the Agreement were held in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. In Northern Ireland, the vote was 71% in favour, while in the Republic the vote was 94% in favour.^[5]

On 24 June, the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA) detonated a car bomb in Newtownhamilton.^[5] On 1 August, following a telephoned warning, a RIRA car bomb detonated in the centre of Banbridge, injuring two RUC officers and 33 civilians.^[5]

On 15 August 1998 the RIRA left a car containing 500 lb of home-made explosives in the centre of Omagh, County Tyrone. The bombers could not find a parking space near the intended target of the courthouse, and the car was left 400 metres away. Three inaccurate telephone warnings were issued, and the RUC believed the bomb was actually located outside the courthouse. They attempted to establish a security cordon to keep civilians clear of the area, which inadvertently pushed people closer to the actual location of the bomb. Shortly after, the bomb exploded killing 29 people and injuring 220 others, in what became the deadliest attack of the Troubles inside Northern Ireland.^[5]

The bombing caused a major outcry throughout the world, and the Irish and British governments introduced new legislation in an attempt to destroy the organisation. The RIRA also came under pressure from the Provisional IRA, when Provisional IRA members visited the homes of 60 people connected with the RIRA and ordered them to disband and stop interfering with Provisional IRA arms dumps. With the organisation under intense pressure, the RIRA called a ceasefire on 8 September.^[5]

Following the Omagh bombing, there was a lull in dissident republican activity; mainly due to the RIRA ceasefire and the arrests of prominent dissident republican militants.^[7] The RIRA used the ceasefire to re-group and re-arm. Meanwhile, the CIRA carried out a number of minor attacks.

2000–2008

The Real IRA called off its ceasefire in January 2000, declaring: "Once again, Óglaigh na hÉireann declares the right of the Irish people to the ownership of Ireland. We call on all volunteers loyal to the Irish Republic to unite to uphold the Republic and establish a permanent national parliament representative of all the people". There was a surge of activity over the next two years.^[7] During this time, republicans carried out a series of bomb and mortar attacks on British Army and RUC bases, including a car bomb attack on Stewartstown RUC base in July 2000.^[8] That November, an RUC officer lost a leg when a booby-trap bomb exploded outside Castlewellan RUC base.^[9] In June 2001, the Real IRA opened fire on RUC officers at a polling station in Ballinascreen, wounding two officers and a civilian. It was thought to be the first close-range gun attack on officers since 1997.^[10]

The Real IRA also carried out a number of bombings in London during 2000–2001; the first republican attacks there since 1997. In June 2000, a bomb damaged Hammersmith Bridge^[11] and in September an RPG-22 rocket struck the SIS Building, headquarters of the Secret Intelligence Service or MI6. In February 2001 a British Army cadet lost a hand when a booby-trap bomb exploded outside his barracks in west London.^[12] The following month a car bomb exploded outside the BBC Television Centre, after a telephoned warning. Another car bomb exploded near Ealing Broadway station in August, causing widespread damage. In November, a third car bomb partially exploded in Birmingham city centre.^[13]

In November 2001, the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) became the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). The reform of the RUC had been a main demand of Irish republicans and nationalists. However, Sinn Féin—the main republican party—refused to support the PSNI until the reforms were fully implemented. Dissident republicans made clear that they would never support a "British paramilitary police force" in any part of Ireland.^[14]

In August 2002, a booby-trap bomb exploded at a British Army base in Derry. It killed a civilian contractor—a former British soldier—who was working at the base.^[15]

On the 17 August 2003, the RIRA killed Danny McGurk, a civilian, in West Belfast. The group later issued a statement offering an apology and saying that the killing was "criminally wrong and detracted from the goal of Irish liberation".^[16][17]

Over the following few years, dissident republican activity gradually waned. This was mainly due to internal tensions and police actions.^[7] There were splits within the paramilitary groups, especially within the Continuity IRA. In 2006, a group calling itself Óglaigh na hÉireann or ONH emerged; over the following years it would become the most active republican paramilitary after the RIRA.^[18]

In 2005, the mainstream IRA—having been on ceasefire since 1997—formally ended its campaign and decommissioned its weapons. In 2007, following the St Andrews Agreement, Sinn Féin finally voted to support the PSNI. Some of Sinn Féin's support base opposed these moves. They believed Sinn Féin had "sold out" and was moving closer to accepting the "British occupation". This led to more republicans lending their support to dissident groups.^[14] Following the IRA's declaration, the British Army greatly reduced its presence in Northern Ireland and left the PSNI in charge of security.^[19]

2009 onward

In March 2009 came the first security force fatalities since the end of the Troubles. The Real IRA shot dead two British soldiers as they collected a delivery outside Massereene Barracks in Antrim. Two other soldiers and two civilian deliverymen were also wounded by gunfire.^[20] Two days later, the Continuity IRA shot dead a PSNI officer responding to a call in Craigavon.^[21] This began the most intensive period of dissident activity since the campaign started.^[22] The number of attacks has risen each year, with 118 attacks in 2009, 239 the following year and a higher number the year after that.^[23]

On the 12 April 2009, the RIRA claimed responsibility for shooting dead MI5 informant Denis Donaldson on 4 April 2006, at his cottage near Glenties, County Donegal, Republic of Ireland.^[24]

The year 2010 saw the first car bombings in Northern Ireland in a decade. The first exploded outside the courthouse in Newry in February;^[25][26] a second exploded outside Palace Barracks (the NI headquarters of MI5) on 12 April;^[27] a third exploded outside Newtownhamilton PSNI base on 22 April;^[28] in August a fourth exploded outside Strand Road PSNI base in Derry;^[29] and in October a fifth exploded outside a bank in the same area, causing widespread damage.^[30] Also that year, a PSNI officer had to have his leg amputated after a booby-trap bomb exploded under his car.^[31]

In April 2011, another PSNI officer was killed when a booby-trap bomb exploded under his car in Omagh.

It was announced in July 2012 that Republican Action Against Drugs (RAAD) and a number of other small republican groups were merging with the Real IRA. The CIRA and the group calling itself ONH were not included in the merger. Some in the media referred to the grouping as the "New IRA".^[32] In November, the group shot dead a Prison Officer on the M1 motorway. The shots were fired from another car, which drove alongside his. He was the first Prison Officer to be killed since 1993.^[33][34][35]

In May 2013 Christine Connor twice attempted to bomb Police Service of Northern Ireland patrols by luring them with false calls to a house on Crumlin Road, Belfast.^[36][37]

At 9:30 pm on January 25, 2013,Gardaí Adiran Donohoe and Joe Ryan entered the car park of the Lordship Credit Union premises and they parked, as did another car that was accompanying them from another credit union branch. They both parked beside the car belonging to officials from Lordship. At this point a navy-blue coloured Volkswagen Passat - that had been waiting stationary on the hard shoulder of the road - drove across the road and blocked the entrance. Four members of the gang were hiding behind a wall surrounding the car park, all wearing balaclavas, while a fifth was driving the car. Two gang members approached the detectives' car from the rear, and as Donohoe opened his door and stepped out to investigate why the car had blocked the entrance, he was instantly shot at close range in the back of the head with a long barrelled shotgun by a masked raider. A single shot was fired.^[38] It was dark, and before Ryan could realise what was taking place he was held at gunpoint and ordered out of his car and onto the ground by a number of gang members possessing a shotgun, handgun and a hammer. Neither officer had time to draw their weapons. The raiders then broke into a car belonging to credit union staff from Lordship, threatening them, which was carrying cash and cheques to the value of about €40,000, but only took a bag with €4,000, mistakenly leaving behind more than €30,000.^[39] Ryan and the credit union staff were left physically uninjured as the gang of five fled the scene, but Ryan was dispossessed of his car keys in an attempt to hinder his reaction. It was only after the perpetrators had escaped that the alarm could be raised.

Shortly after, the British Government announced that the 39th summit of the G8 would be held in June 2013 at the Lough Erne Resort in Fermanagh. Commentators said the British Government chose to hold it in Northern Ireland partly to "show the world that the peace process has worked and normality has returned".^[40] Security sources believed republicans would try to launch an attack during the summit, which "would hijack global headlines".^[41] In March 2013, a car bomb was defused near the resort. ONH said it had planned to detonate it at the hotel but had to abort the attack.^[42] A huge security operation was mounted for the summit and it passed off without incident.

In the run-up to Christmas 2013, there was a surge in dissident republican activity. This included the first bombings in Belfast city centre in a decade. On 25 November a car bomb partially exploded outside Victoria Square Shopping Centre and a PSNI base. A man was forced to drive the bomb to the spot and raised the alarm.^[43][44] On 13 December a small bomb exploded in a holdall outside St Anne's Square, following a telephoned warning.^[45][46] Nobody was hurt in the attacks, which were claimed by ONH. Also in December, two PSNI patrols were the target of automatic gunfire in Belfast.^[47]

In February 2014 the Real IRA (or 'New IRA') sent seven letter bombs to British Army recruitment offices in south-east England; the first time republican militants struck in Britain since 2001.^[48][49] The following month, a PSNI Land Rover was hit by a horizontal mortar in Belfast. A civilian car was also hit by debris, but there were no injuries. It was the first successful attack of its kind in more than ten years.^[50][51] On Christmas Day in North Belfast, police came under fire but were not injured. The attacker was charged with attempted murder.^[52][53] Days later, on 27 November 2015, police in West Belfast came under heavy fire. No officers were wounded, thanks to their vehicle's armour-plating and bullet-proof glass.^[54][55]

See also

• Timeline of the Northern Ireland Troubles

References

External links

• List of Irish Republican Paramilitary Groups
• List of Loyalist Paramilitary Groups
• The Irish Republican Movement Collection at Indiana University
• BBC News timeline of dissident republican activity (March 2009 – March 2013)