[18] In August 1988, an SAS ambush killed IRA members Gerard Harte, Martin Harte and Brian Mullin. No casualties were reported. [101][102] The East Tyrone Brigade reported that they took over the area between the checkpoint and the border, set a roadblock, then drove a tractor carrying the mortar to the firing point and issued a 30-minute warning. Transforming the Peace Process in Northern Ireland: From Terrorism to Democratic Policies, IRA The Bombs and the Bullets: A History of Deadly Ingenuity, The Provisional IRA in England: The Bombing Campaign 1973-1997, Loyal to the Core? I dont mean that in terms of violence. IRA volunteers had been lying in wait outside the barracks and, as the officers left, two gunmen stepped out of concealed positions and shot both officers in the head from close range. I know from the old days there were very few people willing to do the business of fighting. [117][115] A second soldier, Sergeant Dean Oliver, died in a fratricide incident in Fivemiletown on 9 May 1992, in the aftermath of an IRA bomb attack in the area, as mentioned above.[61][118]. The air of foreboding he once sensed when crossing the river into the North doesnt exist today because the Border is imperceptible, he says. The East Tyrone Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA), also known as the Tyrone/Monaghan Brigade[1] was one of the most active republican paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland during "the Troubles". [68], At least two minor engagements occurred in the following weeks between members of the brigade and British Army foot patrols. Lynagh refers to the high proportion of social-welfare recipients in Monaghan, the county's "low-wage and no-wage economy" and his work distributing charity food to families. Although logically it makes more sense for Sinn Fin to start an armed campaign, that is not going to happen no chance, he says. 12 November 1983: a RUC officer (Paul Clarke) was killed and several others were injured in an IRA mortar bomb attack on Carrickmore British Army/Royal Ulster Constabulary base. 2 May 1974: Up to 40 members from the IRA's East Tyrone Brigade attacked the isolated 6 UDR Deanery base in Clogher, County Tyrone with machine gun and RPG fire resulting in the death of Private Eva Martin, a UDR Greenfinch, the first female UDR soldier to be killed by enemy action. May has said that the British do not want a return to the Border of old. He also wrote the best-selling book "The IRA - A Secret History". [50] The RUC stated the men were on their way to mount an ambush on Protestant workmen. In December 1973 he is badly injured in a premature bomb . [26], On 11 February 1990 the brigade managed to shoot down a British Army Gazelle helicopter near Clogher by machine gun fire and wounding three soldiers, one of them seriously. But they wanted to form a rival force that could have wrecked all peace hopes, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. ], In 2012 a Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) club in Tyrone distanced itself from a republican commemoration of those killed in the ambush. He believes that the British had intended to withdraw from Ireland around the late 2030s, by when demographic trends would have led to an overwhelming nationalist majority. [6] Journalist Kevin Toolis states that from 1985 onwards, the brigade led a five-year campaign that left 33 security facilities destroyed and nearly 100 seriously damaged. [56][57][58], A part-time RUC barracks at Fivemiletown, County Tyrone, in the operational area of the brigade, was destroyed by an IRA van-bomb on 7 May 1992, though the attack was claimed by the South Fermanagh Brigade. [82][86], A brigade statement claims that late on the evening of 26 April 1993, a "variation" of the Mark-15 was fired at a British Army position on an open field near the river Fury, a few miles east of Clogher. Incidentally, the RUC vehicle was carrying in custody Pat Treanor, a Sinn Fin councillor from Clones, a border town in County Monaghan, Republic of Ireland. The two men have a long personal history linked to a time and territory around the Border that witnessed some of the regions bloodiest episodes. Along with Lynagh and McKearney, the IRA gang included Gerard O'Callaghan, 29, Tony Gormley, 25, Eugene Kelly, 25, Patrick Kelly, 30, Seamus Donnelly, 19, and Declan Arthurs, 21. Somebody who might find it difficult to smuggle because of a Border post might go out and shoot a Border-post official? [4] The theory involved creating "no-go zones" that the British Army and Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) did not control and gradually expanding them. However, as their attack was underway, the IRA unit was ambushed by a Special Air Service (SAS) unit. Eight were killed and the rest were badly wounded. Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, List of notable actions from 1971 until Loughgall, Operations against British security forces in east and south Tyrone, List of actions from 1996 until the 1997 IRA ceasefire, Individual members of the brigade were also involved in the. [19][unreliable source? While Brexit raises uncertainty around how the UK manages trade across a frontier running through those former battlefields, McKearney and Lynagh believe that the climate and conditions the anti-Catholic discrimination and economic inequality that ignited the Troubles no longer exist. The device exploded while he was driving on Carrydarragh road, near Moneymore, County Londonderry, on 31 May 1993, just a few miles from Cookstown. Not far from that Border town is the home of Gerry McGeough, a former IRA man who calls himself a traditional republican rather than a dissident. We are an unruly people, and if there is an opportunity to be unruly again we will take it, but it will not be violence, he says. See this British Commons account about the NI violence for the first month of 1990: See the May 12 and May 17 entries at the 1992 CAIN chronology: Fortnight, Issues 324-334, Fortnight Publications, 1994, Provisional Irish Republican Army campaign 19691997, "SAS shooting 'destroyed deadly IRA unit'", http://archives.tcm.ie/breakingnews/2001/05/05/story11832.asp, http://sluggerotoole.com/2011/12/02/loughgall-terrorists-could-not-have-been-arrested/, http://www.midulstermail.co.uk/news/local/gaa-distances-itself-from-ira-commemorations-1-3753356, "Calculating, professional enemy that faces KOSB", http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/aberdeen/calculating-professional-enemy-that-faces-kosb-1.598672, "Land Mine Kills 7 British Soldiers on Bus in Ulster", http://www.nytimes.com/1988/08/21/world/ira-claims-killing-of-8-soldiers-as-it-steps-up-attacks-on-british.html, "IRA Claims Killing of 8 Soldiers As It Steps Up Attacks on British", Ex-Para 'led attack by IRA which killed Scots soldiers', Fears of new IRA atrocity after attack on helicopter, CAIN - Listing of Programmes for the Year: 1992-UTV news, 31 January 1992, CAIN - Listing of Programmes for the Year: 1993 - BBC news, 26 April 1993 and UTV news, 29 April 1993, CAIN - Listing of Programmes for the Year: 1992 - BBC news, 5 March 1992, The Irish Emigrant - May 18, 1992: New Paratroop Controversy, "I.R.A. [33] In October 1990, two IRA volunteers from the brigade, Dessie Grew and Martin McCaughey, were shot dead near Loughgall by undercover soldiers while allegedly collecting two rifles from an IRA arms dump. [92] The projectile landed within the grounds of the base, causing some damage according to the RUC. I dont think we are going to see that again.. [105], On 15 July 1994, an armed dump truck ambushed an RUC armoured mobile patrol at Killeshil, near Dungannon. In June 1991, three IRA men, Lawrence McNally, Peter Ryan and Tony Dorris were lured into yet another SAS ambush at Coagh, where their car was raked with gunfire and rocket propelled grenades. [123] The IRA alleged that Dallas was a senior UVF member[124] but this was denied by his family, the police, and the UVF. The IRA men were intercepted by the SAS as they were trying to dump the lorry and escape in cars in the car park of Clonoe Roman Catholic church, whose roof was set on fire by Army flares. McIntyre sees the argument that unionists would be better off economically in a united Ireland within the EU than they would in a post-Brexit UK as a crass case of economic reductionism. But as a community willing to return to armed conflict, there just isnt an appetite for that., Lynagh adds, There is a vested interest in hyping up the political impact and the scare tactics that it is going to open a hornets nest of dissident activity against British rule. Brexit may prove a catalyst for a much earlier withdrawal, he says, as he knows Protestants who are soft Irish nationalists and farmers who do not want to lose EU subsidies. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. The soldiers were being transported from RAF Aldergrove to a military base near Omagh after returning from leave in England. [104][58], Sources from the brigade released a detailed statement on the attack on Pomeroy security base, carried out on 26 June 1994, claiming that they had fired a single 220 pounds (100kg) Mark-15 barrack-buster bomb. "[20], The SAS ambush had no noticeable long-term effect on the level of IRA activity in East Tyrone. McGeough is a supporter of the peace process and now president of the Ancient Order of Hibernians in Co Tyrone. The IRA men were intercepted by the SAS as they were trying to dump the lorry and escape in cars in the car park of Clonoe Roman Catholic church, whose roof was set on fire by Army flares. Gerry McGeough is a prominent republican and former member of the provisional IRA and now a farmer in Co. Tyrone. The device landed unexploded inside the complex, resulting in its evacuation. We are faced with the possibility of two foreign powers implementing the partition of Ireland, and where is the demand in Ireland to say, What gives you the power to do this? , McKearney adds, It is economic imperialism we are dealing with, as opposed to the imperialism that was so raw and so in our face under British imperialism. 9 July 1997: IRA gunmen hijacked and burned a number of vehicles at Dungannon. The escape of former IRA chief of staff Seamus Twomey, Tyrone man Kevin Mallon and JB O'Hagan from north Armagh, caused a country-wide sensation and considerable embarrassment to the Dublin. He recalls the EEC No signs that accompanied Brits Out graffiti around Monaghan when he was growing, up in the 1970s. As the men were all Protestants, many Protestants saw it as a sectarian attack. [88][89], The RUC security base at Caledon became the target of the "Barrack Busters" twice. 11 August 1986: The East Tyrone Brigade destroyed the RUC base at, 23 November 1986: six British soldiers were wounded after the Brigade launched seven mortars at a British Army barracks in. Dozens of residents were evacuated to a neighbouring church's hall. East Tyrone IRA members Pete Ryan, Lawrence McNally and Tony Doris were shot dead in the village of Coagh in June 1991 in an operation believed to involve the SAS. Of these, most were Catholics civilians with no paramilitary connections but six were Provisional Irish Republican Army members. [127] On 11 January 1993 a former sergeant of the B-Specials (Matthew Boyd)[128] was shot dead while driving his car along Donaghmore Road, Dungannon, County Tyrone. The Volunteers killed at Loughgall were Declan Arthurs (21), Tony Gormley (24), Eugene Kelly (25), Pdraig McKearney (32), Jim Lynagh (31), Gerard O'Callaghan (28), Seamus Donnelly (19) and unit commander Patrick Joseph Kelly (30). 26 March 1997: A grenade was thrown by IRA volunteers to the Army/RUC base at Coalisland. In the aftermath of the bombing, on 9 May, a sergeant mayor of the 1st Battalion, the Staffordshire Regiment was shot and killed by a soldier of his company in a blue-on-blue incident at the same spot, while taking part of a security detail around the devastated base. They brought peanuts and fed the squirrels, he says.. [38] Hamilton stated that there were no security or civilian casualties. [73], The brigade was the first to use the Mark-15 Barrack-Buster mortar in an attack on 5 December 1992 against the RUC station in Ballygawley. Five were bound over. jim martin death couples massage class san diego beaver falls football east tyrone brigade members. Another IRA unit then directed heavy machine-gun fire at the front of the barracks, which provided cover for a bomb team to plant a 100lb (45kg) bomb inside. An Phoblacht claimed the IRA men thwarted an ambush and at least two SAS members were killed. East Tyrone appears an outlier in rural areas by the 1990s. Thus it was from there that the IRA East Tyrone Brigade attacks were launched, with most of them occurring in east Tyrone in areas close to south Armagh, which offered good escape routes. Three of the four are convicted killers or have served time in relation to a killing. A five-mile (8km) chase followed before the IRA volunteers managed to escape on foot. Two IRA men got away from the scene, but the four named above were killed. [26] On 30 August 1988, an SAS ambush killed IRA members Gerard Harte, Martin Harte and Brian Mullin as they tried to kill an off-duty Ulster Defence Regiment member near Carrickmore. [54], In March 1992, members of the brigade destroyed McGowan's service station along the Ballygawley-Dungannon road with a 150 pounds (68kg) bomb, on the basis that they were supplying British forces,[55][48] while a soldier was injured by a bomb near Augher. Two IRA men escaped from the scene, but the four named above were killed. Fifty people were evacuated. The former IRA volunteer served 18 years in the Maze prison for the murder of a UVF man in Belfast in February 1976. Interviewees suggest the vast countryside made rural IRA units particularly dangerous. This was the IRA's greatest loss of life in a single incident since the days of the Anglo-Irish War (19191922). In 1988 he had been caught in possession of a 1,000lb bomb and sentenced to 16 years in prison. 9 July 1997: IRA gunmen hijacked and burned a number of vehicles at Dungannon. The UVF killed 40 people in East Tyrone between 1988 and 1994. An IRA volunteer was arrested, while two other members of the IRA made good their escape. Tusk has said that the EU will seek "flexible and creative solutions" to avoid a hard Border. What have they achieved? [51], Another four IRA members were killed in an ambush in February 1992. 8 July 1997: A landmine was planted by the IRA near Dungannon, where there was a bomb alert. McKearney and Lynagh are dissenters, not dissidents; although they support the peace process they object to the policies pursued by Sinn Fin and some of their former comrades who moved into politics. In July of 2005, The Sunday Times reported that Adams was replaced by Brian Arthurs, a former commander of the Provisional IRA's East Tyrone Brigade. 2 May 1974: Up to 40 members from the IRA's East Tyrone Brigade attacked the isolated 6 UDR Deanery base in Clogher, County Tyrone with machine gun and RPG fire resulting in the death of Private Eva Martin, a UDR Greenfinch, the first female UDR soldier to be killed by enemy action. In April 1987 the brigade shot and killed Harold Henry, one of the main building contractors to the security forces in Northern Ireland. But the reality is that it is going to be more and more obvious, Lynagh says. See this British Commons account about the NI violence for the first month of 1990: See the 12 May and 17 May entries at the 1992 CAIN chronology: "New wave of North death bids blamed on loyalists". The UDA retaliated by shooting dead five Catholic male civilians inside a betting shop on the Ormeau Road, Belfast. Sniper Assault Kills A British Soldier in Belfast", "South Armagh Brigade claims sniper attack", http://www.anphoblacht.com/news/detail/27929, Cousin of bomb suspect was top provo; But gun victim denies being a terrorist, Militants Angry About Police's Defense Of Protestant March, CAIN - Listing of Programmes for the Year:1997 - UTV news, 9 July 1997, Loughgall and why the truth will never be told, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia. He has vivid childhood memories of seeing the Moy Bridge and the road to his grandmothers home in Monaghan lying in the Blackwater River after being blown up the night before by B Specials members of the Ulster Special Constabulary quasi-military reserve. The second attack was on the part-time station at The Birches, County Armagh, and it began by driving a JCB digger with a 200lb (91kg) bomb in its bucket through the reinforced fences the RUC had in place around their bases, and then exploding the bomb and raking the police station with gunfire. The group were also responsible for the . Another brother, Kevin, and Tommy's uncle John, neither of whom was in the IRA, were killed by loyalist paramilitaries from the Ulster Volunteer Force in an attack on the family's butcher's shop, in Moy, in January 1992. As the men were all Protestants, many Protestants saw it as a sectarian attack. The East Tyrone IRA saw its activities decline by the 1990s following repeated SAS ambushes. Sniper Assault Kills A British Soldier in Belfast", "Thousands join peace protest in Greysteel", "Geograph:: Cookstown Courthouse Kenneth Allen", "Lords Chamber - Wednesday 8 June 1994 - Hansard - UK Parliament", "3 RUC Officers Wounded in Tyrone Ambush", "Sinn Fein politician caught in IRA gunfire | The Independent | The Independent", "Armed guard at hospital bed of IRA suspect", "Off-duty soldier killed by IRA booby-trap bomb: Car attack follows", "CAIN: Peter Heathwood Collection of Television Programmes - Search Page", "The road to violence. 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