Category: Collusion
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Hardline security bills pose dilemma for Labour
Several bills going through the House of Commons at the moment demonstrate the Johnson's Government's commitment to the hard edge of state power, in both its overt and covert forms. While this legislation raises significant human rights concerns, Labour has been cautious in challenging the Government so far. This may reflect Keir Starmer's strategy of…
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Finucane family welcomes Council of Europe decision
The Irish Government and the family of murdered solicitor Pat Finucane have welcomed a decision by the Council of Europe, calling on the British government to fulfil its human rights obligations in relation to the 1989 killing. The Council has also expressed concern about the British Government's proposals to deal with the legacy…
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Willie Carlin, MI5 agent-running and clandestine diplomacy in Northern Ireland
An intriguing new source on intelligence operations in Northern Ireland emerged this month with the publication of Thatcher's Spy by Willie Carlin, an MI5 agent who was active in Sinn Féin in Derry in the 1980s. I haven't yet read the book, but Carlin's interview with Sam McBride of the News Letter provoked some thoughts…
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Supreme Court strikes down Finucane inquiry
The UK Supreme Court has today ruled that the British Government has failed to meet its obligation to hold a human rights compliant inquiry into the 1989 murder of solicitor Pat Finucane. The court ruled that the De Silva review, which established substantial state collusion in the killing, did not meet this test because it…
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Will Stakeknife Inquiry defy the Stalker precedent?
Chief Constable Jon Boutcher, of Bedfordshire Police, said this week that he has evidence to bring a number of prosecutions in relation to the activities of the alleged British Army agent inside the IRA known as ‘Stakeknife’. According to the BBC, the Stakeknife investigation, Operation Kenova, could recommend the prosecution of members of the IRA,…
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Military Reaction Forces, Mobile Reaction Forces and ‘FRED’ Force
Researcher Ciarán MacAirt has done sterling work in the past few years in dismantling the official story in relation to the 1971 McGurks Bar bombing in North Belfast, an attack which security forces claimed at the time was an IRA own goal. Ciarán's latest research at Paper Trail reveals that the British Army's undercover Military…
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The Walker report: How MI5 shaped RUC Special Branch
The 1980 Walker report on RUC Special Branch has been something of a holy grail for documentary researchers of the Troubles. After a long-running campaign, the Committee for the Administration of Justice has published a redacted version (PDF) released by the Police Service of Northern Ireland. The Rights NI blog has a valuable analysis of…
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Justice for the Forgotten to speak on Troubles Legacy in London
The legacy of the Troubles in Northern Ireland is unusually high on the Westminster agenda at the moment, so it worth taking note of a very timely meeting being organised by the Labour Party Irish Society next Monday: We want to alert you to an extremely important event we are organising for MONDAY 2 JULY,…
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Army doctor backs whistleblower Fred Holroyd
The BBC is today reporting important developments in relation to Fred Holroyd, a key British Army whistleblower on covert activities in Northern Ireland in the 1970s. Holroyd is suing the Ministry of Defence over allegations that he was falsely diagnosed with a mental illness in for political reasons. His account is being backed by a…
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The UVF’s message to Charlie Haughey
The New Year archival releases have produced an outstanding nugget this year in the shape of a purported letter sent by the Ulster Volunteer Force to Irish Taoiseach Charlie Haughey in 1987. The Guardian reports: The loyalist group claimed it had been exploited and manipulated by MI5, MI6 and British special forces from 1972…