Irish Republican News: Archives

October 29, 2019

Westminster election confirmed for December 12

Legislation for an early British general election on Thursday, December 12 has been passed by the House of Commons. It brings down the curtain on a deeply divided parliament in which the hardline unionist DUP held the balance of power for almost two and a half years.

October 28, 2019

EU extends Brexit to January; election looks set for December

The deadline for Britain to leave the EU has been extended until January 31st, or earlier if the Westminster parliament passes legislation to implement the Withdrawal Agreement.

October 26, 2019

Loyalists beat the drum

The leaders of a number of loyalist paramilitary factions have held talks to discuss how to force the British government into a u-turn over a draft Brexit deal agreed this month between British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the European Union.

Unionist demands for return of veto rejected

The issue of a unionist veto over political change has become central to politics in the north of Ireland after attempts were made by unionists to include it in the Brexit withdrawal agreement.

Brexit deadline set to be extended amid election call

A failure of Westminster MPs to support British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s timetable for passing legislation on a Brexit deal has left the project in a new limbo, although one which is likely to be resolved this coming week.

New controls ‘a breach of fundamental rights’

There is growing concern about a draconian new registration procedure for former republican prisoners which requires those targeted to notify the Crown Forces of an extensive list of personal details, activities and movements.

McGuinness tape was spiked by MI6 - claim

British military intelligence withheld documentary footage from 1972 of the late Sinn Féin leader Martin McGuinness engaging in IRA activity, according to an investigation by the BBC Spotlight team.

New images of IRA martyr Bobby Sands

New photographs of hunger striker Bobby Sands have been discovered in an archive of French photojournalist Gérard Harlay. Taken at a rally in August 1976, they are believed to be the last photographs taken of him before his arrest and imprisonment at Long Kesh.

Key independence figure denied pension and medal

The editor of the Irish Bulletin, Kathleen Mary Napoli, was so involved in the War of Independence that she accompanied the treaty delegation to London. But she was informed she was not eligible for an IRA pension because she was not officially a member of the organisation.

Máire Drumm; leader and visionary

Máire was one of the most courageous and visionary leaders Irish Republicanism has ever had, Gerry Adams writes.

October 21, 2019

Theatrical walk-outs as Stormont resurrection fails

A bizarre publicity event organised by the hardline unionist DUP at the defunct Stormont Assembly ended quickly today when an attempt to revive its lawmaking powers failed.

October 18, 2019

Nationalists told they are British, not Irish

The British government has been accused of deliberately failing to implement the provisions of Good Friday Agreement in its domestic law following an appeals court ruling which found that an Irish woman from County Derry is legally British and not Irish.

Vindictive treatment of John Downey

The treatment by the PSNI of a Donegal pensioner has been widely condemned after he was seen to be dragged around in handcuffs following his extradition into British jurisdiction last week.

UVF ‘don’t want Catholics here’

Escalating anti-Catholic attacks in a ‘shared’ housing development in south Belfast have left a disabled man fearing for his life as well as the life of his four-year-old son.

How ‘King Rat’ targeted family members of republicans

The police in the north of Ireland provided unionist paramilitary kingpin Billy Wright with information to help his murder gang target Catholics, one of his former associates has admitted.

New INLA armed group claims attacks

Images have emerged of a show of strength by an apparent INLA unit amid increasing tension in the Derry area.

Unionists to debate abortion at ‘Zombie Stormont’

Unionists are to gather at the mothballed Stormont Assembly chamber in a symbolic attempt to revive the collapsed Six County institutions. They intend to discuss the implementation of Direct Rule legislation for abortion, due to become law on Monday.

Catalonia rises up

Catalonia’s peaceful struggle for freedom has erupted into revolutionary street actions and huge demonstrations after shocking prison terms were handed down by a Spanish court to the former leaders of the Catalan government who had organised a peaceful independence referendum.

The Brexit deal - what they said

A deal announced between the EU and the British government allows for a form of special status for the North of Ireland in regard to single-market regulations, customs and VAT, following a transition period and subject to periodic consent being granted by the Stormont Assembly. A round-up of quotes and statements ahead of a vote on the deal at the Westminster Parliament.

October 17, 2019

DUP reject draft Brexit deal after talks with UDA/UVF

A draft agreement has been reached on Brexit between the European Union and the British government. However, following consultations with loyalist paramilitaries earlier this week, the DUP continue to reject the planned deal.

Ivor Bell cleared as Boston project is discredited

Ivor Bell, an 82-year-old veteran republican, has been found not guilty of involvement in the 1972 IRA execution of informer Jean McConville.

October 16, 2019

New IRA to target border infrastructure

The New IRA has said any border infrastructure developed as a result of Britain’s withdrawal of the north of Ireland from the EU will be considered a legitimate target for attack.

October 12, 2019

‘Open the path to freedom’

The British government and the European Union are being urged to seize the moment to prepare for peaceful Irish unification after Brexit negotiators shied away from a disastrous agenda to reinforce partition.

Frazer was gun-runner for DUP-linked group - BBC

Willie Frazer, a prominent loyalist who in recent years described himself as a ‘victims campaigner’, secretly helped funnel weapons to loyalist paramilitary groups in the early 1990s, according to a BBC television news investigation.

MI5 ‘deleted Finucane files’

British military intelligence removed and destroyed the files of a judge who was investigating Crown Force involvement in the 1989 murder of Belfast defence lawyer Patrick Finucane, according to a BBC documentary aired this week.

Truck driver describes MI5’s terror tactics

A County Tyrone man has recounted a “horrific” attempt by British MI5 intelligence to recruit him as an informer.

PSNI harassment at Saoradh commemoration

Members of a colour party in Saoradh’s National Hunger Strike Commemoration in Newry last weekend were stopped and searched by armed PSNI police.

26-County Budget delivers ‘less than nothing’

The Dublin government has been slammed for a “do less” Budget despite the crisis over growing social inequality and homelessness.

Pressure grows for action on Scottish independence

The biggest ever demonstration for Scottish independence was held last weekend in Edinburgh. A sea of blue and white moved through the Scottish capital as an estimated 200,000 people marched in good cheer despite damp and windy weather conditions.

Act now to save the Kurds

The family of an Italian anti-fascist who died fighting ISIS in northern Syria has appealed for support for the Kurdish people against a Turkish invasion.

October 11, 2019

John Downey extradited

Donegal republican John Downey, who is being pursued in connection with an IRA action in 1972 in which two British soldiers died, handed himself in to Gardaí police earlier today, according to a report this evening by the Press Association.

October 5, 2019

Jingo Johnson’s mad Brexit

Preparations are underway for a crash Brexit after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson revealed a barely believable set of proposals for the border through Ireland which appeared designed to be instantly rejected by Dublin and the European Union.

British audience stunned by message of Irish independence

US author Bonnie Greer has been credited with a significant intervention in Britain’s Brexit debate by eloquently speaking out for Ireland and the peace process on a BBC news talk show.

Child-abusing priest was ‘protected by RUC’

Suspicions are mounting that a former priest was allowed to sexually abuse children in return for informing against republican families in the north of Ireland.

Breakthrough in battle to access collusion documents

Families suing over state collusion with a loyalist paramilitary gang behind dozens of sectarian murders have secured a major breakthrough in their battle to access documents.

British military close ranks

A former British soldier charged with the attempted murder of a special needs man shot dead in County Tyrone in 1974 attended a right-wing rally in London last week despite claiming that he was too ill to attend court hearings in Belfast.

New inquest too late for sister of rubber bullet victim

A preliminary hearing into the death of a Derry man hit by a rubber bullet has taken place in Belfast.

The harvest Britain has sown

This week marks the end of the 1981 hunger strike, in which ten republican prisoners laid down their lives against the criminalisation of their struggle for Irish freedom. The first hunger striker to die, Bobby Sands, described the conditions inside the H-Blocks of Long Kesh prison in September 1978.

Boris’s big deal for Ireland

What is the big sticking point on Boris’s Big Deal (BBD)? That’s easy – he’s for putting in place customs checks/posts/huts/whatever you’re having yourself.