He was forced to hand over lump sums of between 30,000 and 164,000 . They stood beside him with guns pointed at him and said, answer the phone. The code word for the beginning of the operation was Bumper, which was the machine used to polish the floors. If you say a wrong word, it will be your last word., The escape made headlines around the world and was a major security embarrassment to the British Army. Seven men caught in a covert MI5 operation against the Continuity IRA (CIRA) have been sentenced to a total of 33 years. Status: Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC), Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA) Create an email alert based on the current article, The Explainer is a weekly podcast from TheJournal.ie that takes a deeper look at one big news story you need to know about. Irish womans poem of emigration will stir your heart, Rita OHare passes a mighty voice for justice is stilled, UPDATE: Alex Murdaugh sentenced to life in prison for murdering wife and son, WATCH: Irish bishop's funeral held in Los Angeles today, Liam Neeson, Michael D Higgins and Bono among voices featured on "Patrick Kavanagh Almost Everything'", Colin Farrell says Irish people have a strong "sense of civic duty". In this way, the control room should have been impenetrable. Copyright 2023 Irish Studio LLC All rights reserved. Det Chief Insp John Caldwell is a member of the Police Service of Northern Ireland's major investigation team. 24 September 1987 - Ian McKeown (37), shot by the Provisional Irish Republican Army in mistaken identity while sitting in his car on Kilmorey Street, Newry. In April 2022, following a Saoradh-organised event at a Derry cemetery, PSNI officers were attacked. The third in the pecking order of the Continuity IRA leadership was Joseph "Tiny" Lynch, said the prosecution. Heaney was handed a three-and-a half-year sentence, divided equally between custody and probation. This page was last edited on 30 November 2022, at 01:18. He said: "Working alongside our partners in MI5 we carried out a detailed and painstaking operation over a prolonged period of time to uncover the multitude of conspiracies that this group were planning. Jake O'Kane: Is the DUP really going to sink the Assembly and reject the Windsor Framework? Friends say he endured a life of sleepless nights as result of his deep-seated shame over his role in the young soldier's execution. Then, in 1978, he nearly escaped Maze prison while dressed as a prison warden, but was captured before reaching the prison perimeter. There wasnt really a grenade, but seeing the prisoners with guns made this threat significantly more believable. It wasnt long before the officers began to start fighting back and the prisoners began to lose control of the tally lodge. 'Cut all ties with dissident republican activity', New IRA 'still dangerous' despite MI5 operation, Report warns of dissidents' 'growing sophistication', US-made cheese can be called 'gruyere' - court, AOC under investigation for Met Gala dress, The children left behind in Cuba's exodus, Canadian grandma helps police snag phone scammer. As others involved in the savage murder were rounded up on both sides of the border, McCormick fled to the States. 15 March 1983 - Frederick Morton (59), a member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary, shot by Provisional Irish Republican Army during an ambush driving on the Tandragee Road, Newry. One inmate recalls how the wardens were careful never to reveal the layout of the prison to the prisoners. Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA) The judge said neither man had "disavowed their involvement in dissident republican activity", adding that it was evident from the tape recordings that both men played "significant and leading roles" at those meetings of the Continuity IRA. 11 March 1982 - Norman Hanna (28), ex-Ulster Defence Regiment member, shot by the Provisional Irish Republican Army outside the Department of the Environment office, Rathfriland Road, Newry. This list includes members of the Provisional IRA as well as subsequent splinter groups including the Continuity IRA and the Real IRA. Another escapee, Ger McDonell, was arrested in Glasgow, during the arrest of the Brighton Hotel Bomber, Pat McGee, which has been covered in an earlier episode. McLoughlin was essential for the escape because the officers recognized his face coming in and out of the prison. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Inmates in Northern Ireland had been granted this status in 1972, but it was subsequently revoked in 1976 by the Labour Party Secretary of State, Merlyn Rees. During the years of blanket protests, dirty protests, and hunger strikes, there had been a deep-seated hatred between prison officers and prisoners. Killing Rage The life and death of EamonCollins. They knew how to take over a block and how to secure it without the alarm going off. Critical to the investigation into the attempted murder is that the victim is a Detective Chief Inspector someone whose job would routinely involve investigations with intelligence gathered on high-stakes terrorist groups. Profile of killings of Official Irish Republican Army volunteers Martin McAlinden and Colman Rowntree, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Troubles_in_Newry&oldid=1124693300, Articles lacking reliable references from November 2020, All Wikipedia articles written in Hiberno-English, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, 4 September 1971 - John Warnock (18), a member of British Army, killed in an Official Irish Republican Army. He had some experience with escapes and seemed to be the perfect choice for the job. Catholic In November 1977, Townson - a 24-year-old IRA man - was convicted at Dublin's Special Criminal Court of Captain Nairac's murder. The judge said neither man had "disavowed their involvement in dissident republican activity", adding that it was evident from the tape recordings that both men played "significant and leading roles" at those meetings of the Continuity IRA. They received five years in jail and were also found to pose a danger to the public in the future because of their previous terrorist convictions. (Note, "the provos" is a slang term for the provisional IRA. Feedback on Explainer: The New IRA and their not-so-new belief in violent republicanism. There were plans for a peace centre to be built on the site, but it is unlikely this will go ahead after disagreements between Sinn Fin and the DUP. The undercover bugging operation focused on a house in Newry, County Down, in 2014. When discussing the level of aggression they would use the group decided to use extreme verbal aggression, which would hopefully prevent them from having to use the firearms. Your search results for ira border campaign: 2075 newspaper articles contained information about ira border campaign filtered by: Region: northern ireland, northern ireland 31 May 1981 - Michael O'Neill (34), a member of the British Army, killed by a booby trap bomb in an abandoned car, Drumalane Road, Newry. Patrick Brennan, convicted of social welfare fraud. Outside, the main gate was opened, and most of the prisoners were still in the lorry, waiting for the ones in the tally lodge to join them. There is currently a significant sharing of information between the PSNI and garda for instance, on Wednesday night garda moved armed units into border crossing zones as the PSNI warned them the gunmen were suspected to be heading south. 26 June 1972 - David Houston (22), a member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary, shot by Provisional Irish Republican Army while he grappled with a driver of a parked car on Water Street, Newry. Categories . Last night, a one-time friend who had visited him in Philadelphia told us: "There was always a deep sadness in Terry. The IRAparticularly its South Armagh Brigadehad repeatedly attacked the British Army and RUC with home-made mortars, but with limited success. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Users are reminded that they are fully responsible for their own Maze Prison in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, pictured here in February 2017. They now had to try and take over the control room of the main gate, which was also known as the tally lodge. If you say a wrong word, it will be your last word.. Security forces have said there has been intelligence circulating that the group was moving to a more aggressive targeting of security forces. (I.R.A) History &Background, 27th February Deaths & Events in Northern IrelandTroubles, 28th February Deaths & Events in Northern Ireland Troubles | Belfast Child. In 1998, after the Good Friday Agreement, Sinn Fin brought with it a loyal band of PIRA people who they say have dropped the armalite firearms of The Troubles in favour of the ballot box and peace. (1998) The Real IRA: after Omagh, what now? 10 October 1983 - Sean McShane (39), mistakenly shot by the Provisional Irish Republican Army while in a bookmaker's shop, Monaghan Street, Newry; a RUC member, was the intended target. In November 1986, the IRA launched another attack on the RUC base in Newry, but the bombs fell short of their target and landed on residential houses. "He proceeded 'Bless me Father for I have sinned". The prisoners ran toward the final gate and climbed over it as the officers chased them. 8 August 1984 - Brendan Watters (24), a member of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, died in a premature bomb explosion in a house, Barcroft Park, Newry. Sources said there has been an effort by the various dissident groupsto build a concerted and coordinated campaign with groups amalgamating into the New IRA. He never even told Townson and McCormick his real name. He and another prisoner then produced the guns and pointed them at the heads of the officers, but while also being quiet, so as not to alert other officers outside. The New IRA was formed in 2012, and authorities believe it is politically affiliated with the Saoradh group, which was formed in 2016. Prisoners arriving at Maze prison after March 1976, would not be granted special category status. McCormick believed the stranger was an SAS member on a reconnaissance mission, but he was confident he could handle him in a fight. The PSNI's head of serious crime, Detective Chief Superintendent Raymond Murray, described the sentences as "another significant milestone in our relentless efforts to protect communities and save lives by disrupting and frustrating the efforts of those involved in terrorist activities". Sheehy, who travelled from his home in Listowel, County Kerry, to receive instructions in bomb making, was handed a six-year sentence - half to be spent in custody and half on licence. Kevin Walsh, Limerick man convicted of the manslaughter of Garda. Mason and Anthony Hopkins have portrayed IRA members alternately as heroic patriots, psychotic terrorists and tormented rebels.