Playing the 'Green Card' - Financing the Provisional IRA: Part 1

Terrorism and Political Violence

Volumn 11, Issue 2, 1999, Pages 1-38

  Horgan, John ^a   Taylor, Max ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY COLLEGE CORK   (Ireland)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 0033265009     PISSN: 09546553     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/09546559908427502     Document Type: Article

References (142)

1. J. Adams, 'The Financing of Terror', in P. Wilkinson and A.M. Stewart (eds), Contemporary Research on Terrorism (Aberdeen: Aberdeen UP 1987) p.401. Although over 10 years old, Wilkinson and Stewart's collection of contributions remains a cornerstone of academic and policy-oriented research. Within this volume is presented James Adams' research on terrorist fundraising - probably the most detailed descriptions and analyses of this topic, including the fundraising activities of the Provisional IRA. Adams' account remains unrivalled.
2. A preliminary attempt to address the organizational context to Provisional IRA terrorism was described in J. Horgan and M. Taylor, 'The Provisional Irish Republican Army: Command and Functional Structure, Terrorism and Political Violence (TPV) 9/3 (Autumn 1997) pp.1-32 . For a similar look at Loyalist terrorism, see J. Cusack and M. Taylor, 'Resurgence of a Terrorist Organization - Part I: The UDA, a Case Study', TPV 5/3 (Autumn 1993) pp.1-27.
3. A preliminary attempt to address the organizational context to Provisional IRA terrorism was described in J. Horgan and M. Taylor, 'The Provisional Irish Republican Army: Command and Functional Structure, Terrorism and Political Violence (TPV) 9/3 (Autumn 1997) pp.1-32 . For a similar look at Loyalist terrorism, see J. Cusack and M. Taylor, 'Resurgence of a Terrorist Organization - Part I: The UDA, a Case Study', TPV 5/3 (Autumn 1993) pp.1-27.
4. This has been the case even for the older, original IRA and their sporadic 'Border campaign' of the 1950s. Although several reasons contributed to the nature and extent of this short period of guerrilla activity for the IRA, the question of resources was always a very practical concern for the organization at this time. For a worthy discussion of Loyalist fundraising efforts, refer to Steve Bruce, The Red Hand: Protestant Paramilitaries in Northern Ireland (Oxford: OUP 1992) and for an insightful account of fundraising issues and developments within the Ulster Defence Association up to 1993, see J. Cusack and M. Taylor (note 2). Also for a detailed look at specific examples, see A. Silke, 'In Defence of the Realm: Financing Loyalist Terrorism in Northern Ireland, Part One: Extortion and Blackmail', Studies in Conflict and Terrorism 21/4 (1998), pp.331-61.
5. This has been the case even for the older, original IRA and their sporadic 'Border campaign' of the 1950s. Although several reasons contributed to the nature and extent of this short period of guerrilla activity for the IRA, the question of resources was always a very practical concern for the organization at this time. For a worthy discussion of Loyalist fundraising efforts, refer to Steve Bruce, The Red Hand: Protestant Paramilitaries in Northern Ireland (Oxford: OUP 1992) and for an insightful account of fundraising issues and developments within the Ulster Defence Association up to 1993, see J. Cusack and M. Taylor (note 2). Also for a detailed look at specific examples, see A. Silke, 'In Defence of the Realm: Financing Loyalist Terrorism in Northern Ireland, Part One: Extortion and Blackmail', Studies in Conflict and Terrorism 21/4 (1998), pp.331-61.
6. The PIRA itself owes its origins to a split in which the future PIRA divided from the older, original IRA in a dispute largely centred around the then IRA leadership's invocation of an increased socialist political struggle throughout Ireland.
7. For example, in 1971, the Dutch police foiled an attempted shipment of 166 crates of arms to the PIRA from Schipol airport near Amsterdam (T. P. Coogan, The IRA (London: HarperCollins 1995) p.433). Two years later, in March 1973, the fishing trawler Claudia was apprehended in Irish territorial waters following a concerted multi-agency intelligence effort. On board the trawler was not only the then PIRA chief Joe Cahill, but over five tonnes of arms and ammunition given to the PIRA by Libyan sympathisers (J. Bowyer-Bell, The Secret Army: The IRA 1916-1979 (Dublin: Poolbeg Press Ltd 1989) p.398). The shipment contained over 450 rifles and small arms, explosives and anti-tank mines. More arms shipments were intercepted by police in Canada in 1975 (Coogan, p.433) and Dublin in 1977 (ibid.) and in Sept. 1984, another huge seizure saw the Irish Naval Service intercept the trawler Marita Ann, off the south west coast of Ireland near Co. Kerry. The boat contained 7 tonnes of arms, including over 160 pistols, machine guns and rifles, 11 bullet-proof vests, over 70,000 rounds of ammunition, rockets, weapons manuals and grenades, de-bugging equipment and voice distortion equipment ('Three jailed for smuggling arms to IRA', Irish Times (Dublin), 1 July 1984). One of these men, Martin Ferris, from Ardfert in Co. Kerry, later became (and remains to this day) a senior Sinn Féin member). At least two, but perhaps up to four arms shipments from Middle Eastern sympathisers, primarily Colonel Ghadaffi (encouraging the PIRA's campaign against Britain following the American bombing of Libya in 1986, using British-launched jets) preceded the capture of yet another vessel: on 1 Nov. 1987, French customs officials seized the Eksund off the coast of Brittany, north-west France. Over 150 tonnes of arms were aboard the trawler, composing of 'twenty SAM-7s [surface-to-air missiles], 1,000 AK-47s, 600 grenades, ten heavy duty machine-guns, anti-tank guns, Beretta machine-guns, 50 tons of ammunition and two tons of the powerful plastic explosive, Semtex H' (J. Adams, R. Morgan, and A. Bambridge, Ambush: The Secret War between the SAS and the IRA (London: Pan Books 1988) p.185). To date, this has been the largest ever shipment of PIRA arms ever seized.
8. For example, in 1971, the Dutch police foiled an attempted shipment of 166 crates of arms to the PIRA from Schipol airport near Amsterdam (T. P. Coogan, The IRA (London: HarperCollins 1995) p.433). Two years later, in March 1973, the fishing trawler Claudia was apprehended in Irish territorial waters following a concerted multi-agency intelligence effort. On board the trawler was not only the then PIRA chief Joe Cahill, but over five tonnes of arms and ammunition given to the PIRA by Libyan sympathisers (J. Bowyer-Bell, The Secret Army: The IRA 1916-1979 (Dublin: Poolbeg Press Ltd 1989) p.398). The shipment contained over 450 rifles and small arms, explosives and anti-tank mines. More arms shipments were intercepted by police in Canada in 1975 (Coogan, p.433) and Dublin in 1977 (ibid.) and in Sept. 1984, another huge seizure saw the Irish Naval Service intercept the trawler Marita Ann, off the south west coast of Ireland near Co. Kerry. The boat contained 7 tonnes of arms, including over 160 pistols, machine guns and rifles, 11 bullet-proof vests, over 70,000 rounds of ammunition, rockets, weapons manuals and grenades, de-bugging equipment and voice distortion equipment ('Three jailed for smuggling arms to IRA', Irish Times (Dublin), 1 July 1984). One of these men, Martin Ferris, from Ardfert in Co. Kerry, later became (and remains to this day) a senior Sinn Féin member). At least two, but perhaps up to four arms shipments from Middle Eastern sympathisers, primarily Colonel Ghadaffi (encouraging the PIRA's campaign against Britain following the American bombing of Libya in 1986, using British-launched jets) preceded the capture of yet another vessel: on 1 Nov. 1987, French customs officials seized the Eksund off the coast of Brittany, north-west France. Over 150 tonnes of arms were aboard the trawler, composing of 'twenty SAM-7s [surface-to-air missiles], 1,000 AK-47s, 600 grenades, ten heavy duty machine-guns, anti-tank guns, Beretta machine-guns, 50 tons of ammunition and two tons of the powerful plastic explosive, Semtex H' (J. Adams, R. Morgan, and A. Bambridge, Ambush: The Secret War between the SAS and the IRA (London: Pan Books 1988) p.185). To date, this has been the largest ever shipment of PIRA arms ever seized.
9. For example, in 1971, the Dutch police foiled an attempted shipment of 166 crates of arms to the PIRA from Schipol airport near Amsterdam (T. P. Coogan, The IRA (London: HarperCollins 1995) p.433). Two years later, in March 1973, the fishing trawler Claudia was apprehended in Irish territorial waters following a concerted multi-agency intelligence effort. On board the trawler was not only the then PIRA chief Joe Cahill, but over five tonnes of arms and ammunition given to the PIRA by Libyan sympathisers (J. Bowyer-Bell, The Secret Army: The IRA 1916-1979 (Dublin: Poolbeg Press Ltd 1989) p.398). The shipment contained over 450 rifles and small arms, explosives and anti-tank mines. More arms shipments were intercepted by police in Canada in 1975 (Coogan, p.433) and Dublin in 1977 (ibid.) and in Sept. 1984, another huge seizure saw the Irish Naval Service intercept the trawler Marita Ann, off the south west coast of Ireland near Co. Kerry. The boat contained 7 tonnes of arms, including over 160 pistols, machine guns and rifles, 11 bullet-proof vests, over 70,000 rounds of ammunition, rockets, weapons manuals and grenades, de-bugging equipment and voice distortion equipment ('Three jailed for smuggling arms to IRA', Irish Times (Dublin), 1 July 1984). One of these men, Martin Ferris, from Ardfert in Co. Kerry, later became (and remains to this day) a senior Sinn Féin member). At least two, but perhaps up to four arms shipments from Middle Eastern sympathisers, primarily Colonel Ghadaffi (encouraging the PIRA's campaign against Britain following the American bombing of Libya in 1986, using British-launched jets) preceded the capture of yet another vessel: on 1 Nov. 1987, French customs officials seized the Eksund off the coast of Brittany, north-west France. Over 150 tonnes of arms were aboard the trawler, composing of 'twenty SAM-7s [surface-to-air missiles], 1,000 AK-47s, 600 grenades, ten heavy duty machine-guns, anti-tank guns, Beretta machine-guns, 50 tons of ammunition and two tons of the powerful plastic explosive, Semtex H' (J. Adams, R. Morgan, and A. Bambridge, Ambush: The Secret War between the SAS and the IRA (London: Pan Books 1988) p.185). To date, this has been the largest ever shipment of PIRA arms ever seized.
10. For example, in 1971, the Dutch police foiled an attempted shipment of 166 crates of arms to the PIRA from Schipol airport near Amsterdam (T. P. Coogan, The IRA (London: HarperCollins 1995) p.433). Two years later, in March 1973, the fishing trawler Claudia was apprehended in Irish territorial waters following a concerted multi-agency intelligence effort. On board the trawler was not only the then PIRA chief Joe Cahill, but over five tonnes of arms and ammunition given to the PIRA by Libyan sympathisers (J. Bowyer-Bell, The Secret Army: The IRA 1916-1979 (Dublin: Poolbeg Press Ltd 1989) p.398). The shipment contained over 450 rifles and small arms, explosives and anti-tank mines. More arms shipments were intercepted by police in Canada in 1975 (Coogan, p.433) and Dublin in 1977 (ibid.) and in Sept. 1984, another huge seizure saw the Irish Naval Service intercept the trawler Marita Ann, off the south west coast of Ireland near Co. Kerry. The boat contained 7 tonnes of arms, including over 160 pistols, machine guns and rifles, 11 bullet-proof vests, over 70,000 rounds of ammunition, rockets, weapons manuals and grenades, de-bugging equipment and voice distortion equipment ('Three jailed for smuggling arms to IRA', Irish Times (Dublin), 1 July 1984). One of these men, Martin Ferris, from Ardfert in Co. Kerry, later became (and remains to this day) a senior Sinn Féin member). At least two, but perhaps up to four arms shipments from Middle Eastern sympathisers, primarily Colonel Ghadaffi (encouraging the PIRA's campaign against Britain following the American bombing of Libya in 1986, using British-launched jets) preceded the capture of yet another vessel: on 1 Nov. 1987, French customs officials seized the Eksund off the coast of Brittany, north-west France. Over 150 tonnes of arms were aboard the trawler, composing of 'twenty SAM-7s [surface-to-air missiles], 1,000 AK-47s, 600 grenades, ten heavy duty machine-guns, anti-tank guns, Beretta machine-guns, 50 tons of ammunition and two tons of the powerful plastic explosive, Semtex H' (J. Adams, R. Morgan, and A. Bambridge, Ambush: The Secret War between the SAS and the IRA (London: Pan Books 1988) p.185). To date, this has been the largest ever shipment of PIRA arms ever seized.
11. Interview with the first author. Unless otherwise indicated, references to security forces denote that material is sourced from direct interviews conducted by one or both of the authors.
12. For good examples, see M. Carolan, 'Huge explosive haul dwarfs seizures unearthed in Ireland', Irish News, 24 Sept. 1996; E. Keogh, 'Explosives found as Garda search extended in Louth', Irish Times (Dublin), 28 Nov. 1996; and L. Clarke, 'Farmland conceals huge IRA arsenal', Sunday Times (London and Dublin), 2 Jan. 1994.
13. For good examples, see M. Carolan, 'Huge explosive haul dwarfs seizures unearthed in Ireland', Irish News, 24 Sept. 1996; E. Keogh, 'Explosives found as Garda search extended in Louth', Irish Times (Dublin), 28 Nov. 1996; and L. Clarke, 'Farmland conceals huge IRA arsenal', Sunday Times (London and Dublin), 2 Jan. 1994.
14. For good examples, see M. Carolan, 'Huge explosive haul dwarfs seizures unearthed in Ireland', Irish News, 24 Sept. 1996; E. Keogh, 'Explosives found as Garda search extended in Louth', Irish Times (Dublin), 28 Nov. 1996; and L. Clarke, 'Farmland conceals huge IRA arsenal', Sunday Times (London and Dublin), 2 Jan. 1994.
15. See C.J.M. Drake, 'The Provisional IRA: A Case Study' TPV 3/2 (Summer 1991) pp.43-60.
16. For a excellent general overview of the activities of the PIRA, see Drake (note 8).
17. See L. Allen, 'IRA units are still 'alive and kicking', The Sunday Tribune (Dublin), 23 June 1996, p.12. Allen cites Gardaí as noting 'They are now going to legitimate engineering works and placing orders as if in the building business'.
18. See, e.g., D. Ljunggren, 'London security measures stepped up after blast', Reuters, 10 Feb. 1996, and J. Cusack, 'Surveillance pays off with Garda bomb find', Irish Times (Dublin), 19 Feb. 1997.
19. See, e.g., D. Ljunggren, 'London security measures stepped up after blast', Reuters, 10 Feb. 1996, and J. Cusack, 'Surveillance pays off with Garda bomb find', Irish Times (Dublin), 19 Feb. 1997.
20. A 'Garda' or 'Garda Síochána' is an Irish police officer. 'An Garda Síochána' is the Irish police force.
21. M. Crenshaw, 'Decisions to Abandon Terrorism: A Preliminary Case Study of the IRA' (paper presented at the 1995 Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, Chicago Hilton, 31 Aug.-3 Sept. 1995) p.5.
22. See M. Taylor and J. Horgan, 'The 1994-96 Provisional IRA Cease-fire in Northern Ireland', TPV, forthcoming.
23. A similar figure was reported by Allen (note 10). Liz Allen, a respected crime journalist in Ireland, draws on material from what she describes as 'well placed, senior intelligence sources in the Republic'.
24. Interview with security forces in the Republic.
25. See V. Guerin, 'IRA used cease-fire to plan bomb campaign', Sunday Independent (Dublin), 23 June 1996, p.7. This is one of the few reliable media articles to describe PIRA fundraising activities.
26. A similar figure again was reported by Allen (note 10).
27. See note 2.
28. J. Horgan, J. Cusack and M. Taylor, 'The 'Kevin Brady Manual: An Example of Terrorist Training Material' (Department of Applied Psychology, University College Cork). Copies available on request from the first author.
29. Ibid.
30. Ibid.
31. M. McGartland, Fifty Dead Men Walking (London: Blake Publishing Ltd 1997) pp.182-3.
32. Ibid., p.182.
33. Interviews conducted by first author with security forces.
34. For a different set of estimates, see McGartland (note 23) p.182, noting that 'all IRA cell members received £10 per week, and the cell commanders received between £30-£50 per week'.
35. Ibid., p.182.
36. At least 400 members receiving at least £30 amounts to £12,000.
37. See Taylor and Horgan (note 14). The cost of this man's views becoming known to other 'doubters' of the peace process could have been phenomenal, as happened with the PIRA's Quartermaster General who, with a small cadre of dissenters, left the PIRA to form the 'Real IRA', responsible for the Omagh bombing in 1998.
38. Part 2 of this article discusses in greater detail the association between what has been virtually sectioned as 'Sinn Féin-IRA' and the mutual membership by individuals in both 'organizations'. In some cases, this is seen to be especially true with respect to Republican fundraising.
39. See Taylor and Horgan (note 14).
40. S. Anderson, 'Making a Killing', Harper's Magazine 288, 1 Feb. 1994.
41. See Adams (note 1) p.397.
42. See McGartland (note 23).
43. See note 1.
44. The first author attended many Republican fundraiser 'functions' in pubs in Cork to observe the different amounts of cash being gained from very legitimate activities (perhaps in 3-4 hours, the Sinn Féin purse would easily net £1,200).
45. For a very detailed account of these procedures refer to Adams (note 1).
46. The Garda Síochána has often referred to examples of this.
47. See note 2.
48. Interviews conducted by first author with security forces and members of the PIRA in the Republic. Also see notes 2 and 14.
49. Cited in S. Cronin, Irish Nationalism: Its Roots and Ideology (Dublin: Academy Press 1980).
50. Interview conducted by first author with security forces. This was an official estimate for 1988 made by An Garda Síochána in 1990.
51. See 'MP calls for tough laws against IRA racketeering', The Independent (London), 6 Nov. 1990. This estimate is from the Northern Ireland Office, as described in 'Northern Ireland: Reappraising Republican Violence - A Special Report', Conflict Studies 246, Nov.-Dec. 1991, pp.1-29.
52. See 'MP calls for tough laws against IRA racketeering', The Independent (London), 6 Nov. 1990. This estimate is from the Northern Ireland Office, as described in 'Northern Ireland: Reappraising Republican Violence - A Special Report', Conflict Studies 246, Nov.-Dec. 1991, pp.1-29.
53. T. Brady, 'Era of the Renegade IRA', Irish Independent (Dublin), 23 Dec. 1994.
54. Anderson, 'Making a Killing' (note 32).
55. 'IRA rackets busted', The Sun (London), 20 April 1994.
56. S. Pogatchnik, 'N. Ireland - Law Vs. Order', Associated Press, 21 Dec. 1995.
57. See Sunday Times (London and Dublin), 12 March 1995, in Crenshaw (note 13).
58. Series of interviews conducted by the first author.
59. D. Henderson, 'Cash-hit Loyalists behind security raid', Press Association News, 14 April 1996. This estimate of £10m covers the PIRA and the then principal Loyalist terrorist groups, the UDA/UFF and the UVF.
60. M. Sheehan, 'Police move to seize IRA businesses', Sunday Times (London and Dublin), 30 April 1996.
61. These specific interviews were with security forces based in the Republic of Ireland.
62. See B. Cordes, B. M. Jenkins and K. Kellen, 'A Conceptual Framework for Analysing Terrorist Groups', RAND Corporation (Jun. 1985) esp. p.106.
63. This figure has been repeated throughout the course of interviews conducted by the authors with different members of the security forces North and South.
64. M. Taylor, The Terrorist (Brasseys: London 1988) p.52.
65. See Coogan (note 5) p.522.
66. Ibid., p.522.
67. Ibid., p.522.
68. Ibid., p.523.
69. See C. Parkin, 'New hope of solving Shergar mystery', Press Association News, 4 April 1996.
70. See Coogan (note 5) p.523.
71. Ibid., p.523.
72. Ibid., p.524.
73. Guinness was released without injuries and without a ransom having been paid. Coogan (note 5, p.524) concludes, 'the only good thing to be said about kidnappings in the period ... is that the Gardaí showed a consistent and successful record against them'. Throughout the 1980s, various INLA units, as well as some particular criminal gangs, were seen to mirror Provo kidnappings (as demonstrated through the Guinness kidnapping), not only through actual kidnapping itself but also through the frequent issue of kidnap threats (ibid., pp.521-4). The Loyalists were not unaware of the effectiveness and potential profit of such exploits. Soon after the Don Tidey incident, Loyalist paramilitaries 'promptly counterattacked by demanding a like amount of money from stores owned by Associated British Foods in Ireland. There were some reports of vegetables being poisoned, causing the Quinnsworth chain to install videos carrying warnings to shoppers and requests to report anything suspicious. This episode petered out without it being ascertained whether or not the Loyalists had received any money' (ibid., p.524).
74. J. Cusack, 'Co-ordinated British effort to combat IRA is paying off', Irish Times (Dublin), 28 Sept. 1996.
75. Her case is not isolated. In 1996, PIRA member and Brixton Prison escapee, Nessan Quinlivan, was charged in Dublin with falsely imprisoning a man in Limerick, and in Nov. 1995, a five-man PIRA ASU, armed with hammers and pistols, kidnapped a 19 year-old man from Strabane, in Co. Tyrone, tying him up and forcing him into a car which was later found burned out in the countryside near the border. This type of behaviour is commonly seen among Ireland's paramilitary groups, and often in the context of internal security matters.
76. See Taylor (note 55) p.52.
77. Robert P. Clark, The Basque Insurgents. ETA: 1952-1980 (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press 1984).
78. See Taylor (note 55) p.52.
79. In 1974, PIRA active service unit hijacked a priceless art collection owned by Lady Clementine Beit, the widow of former Tory MP Sir Alfred Beit. The gang broke into their home, the Russborough mansion in Blessington, Co Wicklow, bound and gagged the couple and stole 19 paintings worth over £8m (Coogan (note 5) p.406). On 31 March 1976, a PIRA unit robbed the Cork-Dublin train at Co. Kildare of over £220,000 in an operation planned by the PIRA long in advance of the actual robbery, a raid that was even considered by the INLA because of the nature of the potential reward. In 1979, Patrick Aaron 'Arnie' O'Connell from Cork was charged with the murder of Eamonn Ryan, shot dead in a robbery in the Bank of Ireland, in Strand Street, Tramore, Co. Waterford on 7 Aug. 1979. O'Connell was also charged with the armed robbery of £5,400 from the bank and membership of the PIRA (also charged with the robbery from the bank was William Hayes from Waterford. Hayes was also charged of being a member of PIRA). In Aug. 1984, an ASU robbed a cash delivery van in Drumcree, Co. Meath, and in doing so, shot dead Garda Francis Hand (See 'A dozen other Gardaí killed in last 26 years', Irish Times (Dublin), 8 June 1996). In May 1990, a 6-member ASU attempted to rob a bank in Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford. The ASU was led by one of the relatively few female Irish terrorists, and opened fire on Garda' during the raid (J. Cusack, 'IRA unit caused Gardaí increasing worry', Irish Times (Dublin), 8 June 1996). In June 1994, the head of the PIRA in Munster was believed to have been responsible for the robbery of £95,000 in Co. Limerick. He was also believed responsible for a double bank raid in neighbouring Co. Cork in Jan. 1994 (see Allen, note 10). In Nov. 1994, three months inside the PIRA cease-fire, an ASU shot and killed postal worker Frank Kerr, in Newry, Co. Down during a post office raid (J. Cusack, 'Armed robberies persisted during cease-fire', Irish Times (Dublin), 10 June 1996). Within two months, PIRA members in Co. Monaghan conducted an armed robbery of a local Cash and Carry outlet (ibid.). In June 1996 in Adare, Co. Limerick in the Republic of Ireland, a small ASU of the Munster Brigade shot two Garda detectives, killing one of them (Detective Garda Jerry McCabe) in a botched raid. The gang had intended to rob the post office delivery van of its contents. Pearse McCauley, the Brixton Prison escapee was charged in Dublin on 4 Dec. 1997 with the murder of McCabe, and of conspiring with Michael O'Neill, Jeremiah Sheehy, Pat Walsh and others to commit the robbery (see 'McCauley charged with murder of Garda McCabe', Irish Times (Dublin), 5 Dec. 1997). The Munster Brigade of the PIRA's Southern Command, including the ASU that killed McCabe, is one of the main units in the country responsible for robberies, a unit believed to be generally quite proficient at this.
80. In 1974, PIRA active service unit hijacked a priceless art collection owned by Lady Clementine Beit, the widow of former Tory MP Sir Alfred Beit. The gang broke into their home, the Russborough mansion in Blessington, Co Wicklow, bound and gagged the couple and stole 19 paintings worth over £8m (Coogan (note 5) p.406). On 31 March 1976, a PIRA unit robbed the Cork-Dublin train at Co. Kildare of over £220,000 in an operation planned by the PIRA long in advance of the actual robbery, a raid that was even considered by the INLA because of the nature of the potential reward. In 1979, Patrick Aaron 'Arnie' O'Connell from Cork was charged with the murder of Eamonn Ryan, shot dead in a robbery in the Bank of Ireland, in Strand Street, Tramore, Co. Waterford on 7 Aug. 1979. O'Connell was also charged with the armed robbery of £5,400 from the bank and membership of the PIRA (also charged with the robbery from the bank was William Hayes from Waterford. Hayes was also charged of being a member of PIRA). In Aug. 1984, an ASU robbed a cash delivery van in Drumcree, Co. Meath, and in doing so, shot dead Garda Francis Hand (See 'A dozen other Gardaí killed in last 26 years', Irish Times (Dublin), 8 June 1996). In May 1990, a 6-member ASU attempted to rob a bank in Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford. The ASU was led by one of the relatively few female Irish terrorists, and opened fire on Garda' during the raid (J. Cusack, 'IRA unit caused Gardaí increasing worry', Irish Times (Dublin), 8 June 1996). In June 1994, the head of the PIRA in Munster was believed to have been responsible for the robbery of £95,000 in Co. Limerick. He was also believed responsible for a double bank raid in neighbouring Co. Cork in Jan. 1994 (see Allen, note 10). In Nov. 1994, three months inside the PIRA cease-fire, an ASU shot and killed postal worker Frank Kerr, in Newry, Co. Down during a post office raid (J. Cusack, 'Armed robberies persisted during cease-fire', Irish Times (Dublin), 10 June 1996). Within two months, PIRA members in Co. Monaghan conducted an armed robbery of a local Cash and Carry outlet (ibid.). In June 1996 in Adare, Co. Limerick in the Republic of Ireland, a small ASU of the Munster Brigade shot two Garda detectives, killing one of them (Detective Garda Jerry McCabe) in a botched raid. The gang had intended to rob the post office delivery van of its contents. Pearse McCauley, the Brixton Prison escapee was charged in Dublin on 4 Dec. 1997 with the murder of McCabe, and of conspiring with Michael O'Neill, Jeremiah Sheehy, Pat Walsh and others to commit the robbery (see 'McCauley charged with murder of Garda McCabe', Irish Times (Dublin), 5 Dec. 1997). The Munster Brigade of the PIRA's Southern Command, including the ASU that killed McCabe, is one of the main units in the country responsible for robberies, a unit believed to be generally quite proficient at this.
81. In 1974, PIRA active service unit hijacked a priceless art collection owned by Lady Clementine Beit, the widow of former Tory MP Sir Alfred Beit. The gang broke into their home, the Russborough mansion in Blessington, Co Wicklow, bound and gagged the couple and stole 19 paintings worth over £8m (Coogan (note 5) p.406). On 31 March 1976, a PIRA unit robbed the Cork-Dublin train at Co. Kildare of over £220,000 in an operation planned by the PIRA long in advance of the actual robbery, a raid that was even considered by the INLA because of the nature of the potential reward. In 1979, Patrick Aaron 'Arnie' O'Connell from Cork was charged with the murder of Eamonn Ryan, shot dead in a robbery in the Bank of Ireland, in Strand Street, Tramore, Co. Waterford on 7 Aug. 1979. O'Connell was also charged with the armed robbery of £5,400 from the bank and membership of the PIRA (also charged with the robbery from the bank was William Hayes from Waterford. Hayes was also charged of being a member of PIRA). In Aug. 1984, an ASU robbed a cash delivery van in Drumcree, Co. Meath, and in doing so, shot dead Garda Francis Hand (See 'A dozen other Gardaí killed in last 26 years', Irish Times (Dublin), 8 June 1996). In May 1990, a 6-member ASU attempted to rob a bank in Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford. The ASU was led by one of the relatively few female Irish terrorists, and opened fire on Garda' during the raid (J. Cusack, 'IRA unit caused Gardaí increasing worry', Irish Times (Dublin), 8 June 1996). In June 1994, the head of the PIRA in Munster was believed to have been responsible for the robbery of £95,000 in Co. Limerick. He was also believed responsible for a double bank raid in neighbouring Co. Cork in Jan. 1994 (see Allen, note 10). In Nov. 1994, three months inside the PIRA cease-fire, an ASU shot and killed postal worker Frank Kerr, in Newry, Co. Down during a post office raid (J. Cusack, 'Armed robberies persisted during cease-fire', Irish Times (Dublin), 10 June 1996). Within two months, PIRA members in Co. Monaghan conducted an armed robbery of a local Cash and Carry outlet (ibid.). In June 1996 in Adare, Co. Limerick in the Republic of Ireland, a small ASU of the Munster Brigade shot two Garda detectives, killing one of them (Detective Garda Jerry McCabe) in a botched raid. The gang had intended to rob the post office delivery van of its contents. Pearse McCauley, the Brixton Prison escapee was charged in Dublin on 4 Dec. 1997 with the murder of McCabe, and of conspiring with Michael O'Neill, Jeremiah Sheehy, Pat Walsh and others to commit the robbery (see 'McCauley charged with murder of Garda McCabe', Irish Times (Dublin), 5 Dec. 1997). The Munster Brigade of the PIRA's Southern Command, including the ASU that killed McCabe, is one of the main units in the country responsible for robberies, a unit believed to be generally quite proficient at this.
82. In 1974, PIRA active service unit hijacked a priceless art collection owned by Lady Clementine Beit, the widow of former Tory MP Sir Alfred Beit. The gang broke into their home, the Russborough mansion in Blessington, Co Wicklow, bound and gagged the couple and stole 19 paintings worth over £8m (Coogan (note 5) p.406). On 31 March 1976, a PIRA unit robbed the Cork-Dublin train at Co. Kildare of over £220,000 in an operation planned by the PIRA long in advance of the actual robbery, a raid that was even considered by the INLA because of the nature of the potential reward. In 1979, Patrick Aaron 'Arnie' O'Connell from Cork was charged with the murder of Eamonn Ryan, shot dead in a robbery in the Bank of Ireland, in Strand Street, Tramore, Co. Waterford on 7 Aug. 1979. O'Connell was also charged with the armed robbery of £5,400 from the bank and membership of the PIRA (also charged with the robbery from the bank was William Hayes from Waterford. Hayes was also charged of being a member of PIRA). In Aug. 1984, an ASU robbed a cash delivery van in Drumcree, Co. Meath, and in doing so, shot dead Garda Francis Hand (See 'A dozen other Gardaí killed in last 26 years', Irish Times (Dublin), 8 June 1996). In May 1990, a 6-member ASU attempted to rob a bank in Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford. The ASU was led by one of the relatively few female Irish terrorists, and opened fire on Garda' during the raid (J. Cusack, 'IRA unit caused Gardaí increasing worry', Irish Times (Dublin), 8 June 1996). In June 1994, the head of the PIRA in Munster was believed to have been responsible for the robbery of £95,000 in Co. Limerick. He was also believed responsible for a double bank raid in neighbouring Co. Cork in Jan. 1994 (see Allen, note 10). In Nov. 1994, three months inside the PIRA cease-fire, an ASU shot and killed postal worker Frank Kerr, in Newry, Co. Down during a post office raid (J. Cusack, 'Armed robberies persisted during cease-fire', Irish Times (Dublin), 10 June 1996). Within two months, PIRA members in Co. Monaghan conducted an armed robbery of a local Cash and Carry outlet (ibid.). In June 1996 in Adare, Co. Limerick in the Republic of Ireland, a small ASU of the Munster Brigade shot two Garda detectives, killing one of them (Detective Garda Jerry McCabe) in a botched raid. The gang had intended to rob the post office delivery van of its contents. Pearse McCauley, the Brixton Prison escapee was charged in Dublin on 4 Dec. 1997 with the murder of McCabe, and of conspiring with Michael O'Neill, Jeremiah Sheehy, Pat Walsh and others to commit the robbery (see 'McCauley charged with murder of Garda McCabe', Irish Times (Dublin), 5 Dec. 1997). The Munster Brigade of the PIRA's Southern Command, including the ASU that killed McCabe, is one of the main units in the country responsible for robberies, a unit believed to be generally quite proficient at this.
83. Compiled from: J. Cusack and M. M. Tynan, 'Government accepts IRA killed Garda in Adare', Irish Times (Dublin), 14 June 1996; C. Parkin, 'Police shooting: second man in court', Press Association News, 12 June 1996; other Irish Times excerpts from 8, 10, 11 June 1996.
84. Compiled from: J. Cusack and M. M. Tynan, 'Government accepts IRA killed Garda in Adare', Irish Times (Dublin), 14 June 1996; C. Parkin, 'Police shooting: second man in court', Press Association News, 12 June 1996; other Irish Times excerpts from 8, 10, 11 June 1996.
85. Compiled from: J. Cusack and M. M. Tynan, 'Government accepts IRA killed Garda in Adare', Irish Times (Dublin), 14 June 1996; C. Parkin, 'Police shooting: second man in court', Press Association News, 12 June 1996; other Irish Times excerpts from 8, 10, 11 June 1996.
86. See C. Parkin, 'IRA denies killing Irish policeman', Press Association News, 7 June 1996.
87. Radio Telefis Éireann, the Irish state broadcasting agency.
88. See Parkin (note 72), and 'IRA denies involvement in Limerick shooting', An Phoblacht/Republican News (Dublin and Belfast), 13 June 1996.
89. J. Cusack and S. Breen, 'Reputed head of Munster IRA arrested over killing', Irish Times (Dublin), 10 June 1996.
90. The Green Book is the PIRA's training manual, issued to each new recruit, and the material from which is used as a basis for lectures in training.
91. V. Guerin, 'IRA used cease-fire to plan bomb campaign', Sunday Independent (Dublin), 23 June 1996.
92. Ibid.
93. The mandatory sentence for murdering a Garda is 40 years imprisonment without remission.
94. See Silke (note 3) and Cusack and Taylor (note 2).
95. Coogan (note 5) p.581.
96. Our use of apparent generalities, e.g., when we mention the variety of distribution (of financial income for each 'PIRA member') should not be seen as a form of safeguarding against incorrectness - rather it should be seen as a real and practical aspect of life for any Republican, be he/she an active member of the PIRA or not. This 'heterogeneity' is also mirrored when we discuss the psychology of the terrorist and examine the false assumption of the existence of so-called terrorist 'profiles'.
97. Officer Commanding or Officer Commandeering.
98. See McGartland (note 23) p.183.
99. E. Collins and M. McGovem, Killing Rage (London: Granta Books 1997) p.103. Collins was found dead with multiple stab wounds on Wednesday, 27 Jan. At the time of writing, responsibility for the murder has not been attributed.
100. J. Cusack, 'IRA killed more during cease-fire than since ending', Irish Times (Dublin), 19 July 1997.
101. Coogan (note 6) p.480.
102. R. Debray, Revolution in the Revolution? (New York: MR Press 1967).
103. See note 2.
104. See, e.g., E. Keogh, 'Explosives found as Garda search extended in Louth', Irish Times (Dublin), 28 Nov. 1996.
105. One security force member in the Republic described areas of Co. Limerick as 'worse than Crossmaglen' (interview conducted by the first author). Also see M. Taylor and J. Horgan, 'The 1994-96 Provisional IRA Cease-fire in Northern Ireland' (note 14).
106. Adams (note 1) p.394.
107. Ibid.
108. See 'Swiss bank ordered to disclose IRA fund details', Irish Times (Dublin), 21 Nov. 1985.
109. Ibid.
110. Offences Against the State Act (Amendment) 1985.
111. E. Shanahan, 'Bank transfers £1.7m IRA funds to court', Irish Times (Dublin), 21 Feb. 1985.
112. Ibid.
113. Interviews with the first author.
114. See 'Court to decide on £1.75m', Irish Times (Dublin), 27 April 1988.
115. J. Cusack, 'Money for pig exporting or funds to help the IRA?', Irish Times (Dublin), 5 May 1988.
116. Ibid.
117. This source's estimate is not included in Table 1.
118. J. Adams, R. Morgan and A. Bambridge, Ambush: The War Between the SAS and the IRA (London: Pan Books 1988), pp.38-9.
119. Document shown to the authors.
120. See Bruce (note 3) and Cusack and Taylor (note 2).
121. Annual Party Conference.
122. Adams (note 1) p.401.
123. See Cusack and Taylor (note 2).
124. Royal Ulster Constabulary Chief Constable's Report 1995. Published by the Royal Ulster Constabulary.
125. See Taylor and Horgan (note 14).
126. Throughout discussions such as this, many commentators argue that Sinn Féin politicians become involved in anti-drugs activities because of 'caring for their communities'. While the issue of motivation as it might relate to fundraising will be addressed in Part 2 of this article, there is a considerable body of evidence (apart from the nature and extent of paramilitary punishment attacks and killings of suspected drug dealers) to support an altogether more practical and realistic view.
127. J. Robinson, The Laundrymen (London: Simon & Schuster Ltd 1995).
128. Ibid., p.213.
129. Ibid.
130. Interview conducted by first author.
131. Interview with Sinn Féin Ard Comhairle member.
132. Coogan (note 5) p.430.
133. Ibid.
134. Interview with senior PIRA member.
135. Interviewed by the first author in 1997.
136. T.P. Coogan, The Troubles: Ireland's Ordeal 1966-1995 and the Search for Peace (London: Hutchinson 1995) p.213.
137. Coogan (note 5) p.430.
138. The RUC said in 1996 that it was in no doubt that the DAAD killings were sanctioned by the PIRA leadership. One officer said that the PIRA increased its attacks on alleged drugs dealers because they feared they were losing their grip on nationalist areas in the light of the 1994-96 cease-fire. Other observers in Belfast believe that the 1994-96 shootings were a way of 'letting off steam' among PIRA activists, deemed to be frustrated at the slow pace of the peace process. The much forwarded suggestion however, that Loyalist paramilitaries would have wasted little time in retaliating if this were so has some credibility. Security sources in the Republic have commented on the concern which the PIRA Southern Command have had about 'unleashing' their activists in the south. Information from the families of the DAAD victims helps in understanding the development of DAAD. Some family members of victims denied outright their loved ones' involvement in the drug trade, but others more interestingly point to 'personality clashes' with some PIRA figures in positions of authority. Veronica Guerin has argued that PIRA supporters are apparently exploiting Dublin city's drug epidemic through exercising their 'Republican muscle' in order to drive drug dealers out of communities. Guerin believes that these supporters are playing to a plan devised by PIRA strategists. She cites Gardaí as saying that even these vigilantes are 'made to feel important': The idea is they will encourage support for Sinn Fein at the next election because they will have driven the pushers out' (see V. Guerin, 'IRA used cease-fire to plan bomb campaign', Sunday Independent (Dublin), 23 June 1996). Subsequent electoral results seem to have upheld this assertion.
139. R. Balls, 'No hero in communities which he exploited', Irish Times (Dublin) 16 Jan. 1998.
140. H. MacDonell, 'MPs told of paramilitary ecstasy rake-off', Press Association News, 1 May 1996.
141. V. Kearney, 'Hidden Agenda to IRA hits on drug dealers', Sunday Times (London and Dublin), 15 Feb. 1998.
142. 'Northern Ireland: Reappraising Republican Violence - A Special Report', Conflict Studies (note 43).