Irish Republican News: Archives

May 29, 2020

Who killed Seamus Ludlow?

On the day it emerged that the most senior British military figure linked to the killing has died, an Irish court has served to maintain an official cover-up of the murder of Louth man Seamus Ludlow.

No explanation for militarised raids, arrests

A violent Crown Force operation to arrest four Derry men ended with all four being released without a single shred of evidence being put forward, according to the men’s lawyers.

IRA questions dominate interviews for SF leaders

As part of a newspaper interview, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald has said the IRA’s armed struggle was “justified” and there is “every chance” she would have taken up arms during the conflict.

Dysfunction on show as lockdowns break down

The Six Counties currently have the highest rate of transmission of the coronavirus in either Britain or Ireland but is facing a new danger this week as lockdowns weaken on both sides of the border.

Activists push back against normalisation of the PSNI

Republicans have been removing dozens of PSNI symbols across north and west Belfast as part of a campaign against Britain’s ‘normalisation’ of the PSNI and other state forces.

Eugene Reavey challenges online smears

Prominent peace campaigner Eugene Reavey is to take on defamatory statements made about him on the internet by suing Google and Facebook.

Dig may be close to remains of Gaelic leader

‘Red’ Hugh O’Donnell is one of the most romantic figures in Irish history. He was a sixteenth-century Irish nobleman who brought his country to the very brink of expelling the English occupation.

‘Punishment control’ for released prisoners

Saoradh have sought public attention for the case of former Republican Prisoner, Vinny Kelly, who has been persecuted since his release last year.

May 22, 2020

The Continuity IRA, which says it has been recruiting and regrouping in the Fermanagh area, has released pictures of one of its armed patrols along a border road. It has claimed the organisation “can operate at any time day or night in south Fermanagh”.

Unionist MP defies policy change, insists Irish are British

A row has erupted after DUP MP Gavin Robinson said people born in the north of Ireland have to be British first before they can be Irish.

Gardaí involved in abusive Belfast search - RSF

Republican Sinn Féin have said a heavy-handed police raid on one of its member’s homes in west Belfast involved a specialist unit from the 26 Counties.

Concern as Basque hunger striker hospitalised

Irish republican groups have been expressing their support for Basque political prisoner Patxi Ruiz, who has been hospitalised with kidney failure after a hunger and thirst strike which began on May 11.

Sectarian incidents increase

A Catholic church in County Antrim has been targeted in a loyalist paint bomb attack.

Irish support for struggling Native American communities

The chief of the Choctaw Nation in Oklahoma has welcomed Irish donations to help two tribes suffering in the Covid-19 pandemic as a sign of the solidarity between the two nations which dates back more than 170 years.

Forty-seven years ago today

Even though 47 years have passed, the family of Michael Leonard is still determined to find out the full truth about his murder by the RUC on a lonely country road in Fermanagh near the border with Donegal.

Irish unification is still inevitable

Kevin Meaghar looks at the state of the debate on Irish Unity as the idea continues to go mainstream.

May 15, 2020

A battle won

Every person born in the north of Ireland is currently regarded as a European Union citizen for immigration purposes after the British government backed down in the face of a marathon campaign by a Derry woman and her US-born partner.

Adams ruling to open door for other internees

Hundreds of those interned without trial in the 1970 could see convictions quashed or receive compensation as a result of a ruling of the Supreme Court in London in favour of Gerry Adams.

Britain to prepare Irish seaports as Brexit inches forward

There have been conflicting signals over how Britain intends to implement the special status for the north of Ireland in the wake of Brexit.

Loyalists brutally attack and rob young cyclist

A Catholic teenager who was attacked by loyalists in north Belfast on Sunday evening has recounted a savage sectarian assault as he was out for a cycle.

UDA behind threats to journalists - PSNI

The PSNI have said loyalist paramilitaries are behind threats against a number of journalists and politicians, and told one journalist he could be the target of an under-car booby trap attack.

Lockdown clashes with marching season

Four sectarian parades are being planned by loyalists despite the continuing coronavirus lockdown in the north of Ireland.

Onus on Britain to address cases of internees

Internment is a policy which has seen frequent use in Ireland. It was used by the British in the years after the 1916 Rising and during the Tan War.

What is the name of this place anyways?

This week the name of this place we live in caused a bit of a political stir. The Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar called Belfast members of Fine Gael, “overseas members” and a former Tyrone football player referred to Tyrone as “Up here in the UK”. But the truth is the names used for Ireland do matter and have always been contentious.

May 13, 2020

Convictions overturned after Adams’s internment ruled unlawful

Convictions against Gerry Adams dating from the 1970s have been overturned by the Supreme Court in London in a judgement which could have consequences for many others who were interned without trial.

May 8, 2020

Escapee’s conviction declared miscarriage of justice

The conviction of one of those who escaped Long Kesh in 1983 and who settled in the USA, Kevin Barry Artt, has been quashed two decades after the British government ended its efforts to extradite him.

Lockdown tensions boil over in the Dáil

Political anxiety overcame caretaker Taoiseach, Fine Gael leader Leo Varadkar in the Dublin parliament this week when he suddenly lashed out at Sinn Féin’s Mary Lou McDonald, who he accused of being “two-faced”.

All-Ireland opportunity to eliminate virus ‘could be wasted’

A medical expert has said that with infection rates in decline, the island of Ireland now has an opportunity to eliminate the coronavirus.

Grief as another IRA stalwart passes

A funeral for lifelong republican Jim Scullion, who led IRA prisoners in Long Kesh at the height of the conflict, has provoked criticism from unionists.

Whistleblower calls for nursing homes inquiry

A whistleblower in a Dublin nursing home where a significant number of patients have died from a coronavirus infection has made serious allegations of failings leading to the deaths of 24 clients.

New US envoy sworn in

A new US Special Envoy to the north of Ireland, Mick Mulvaney, has been sworn into office. Mr Mulvaney is an Irish-American with family roots in County Mayo.

Áine and Eibhlín Nic Giolla Easpaig

A review of the autobiographical book ‘Sisters in Cells’ by Bernadette Hyland.

The Executions of 1916

A historical account of this week in 1916, when the executions of the Easter Rising leaders took place.

May 1, 2020

Divided we fall as lockdowns clash at Border

The Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald has spoken out about the danger of having two jurisdictions in Ireland in the current health crisis, saying it is wrong to have an all-island approach to animal care, but not human healthcare.

Duffy arrest an exercise in persecution

Prominent republican Colin Duffy, currently on bail awaiting trial, has overcome a cynical attempt by the PSNI to return him to jail over an alleged breach of his bail conditions.

Brexit delay urged over British inaction

The British government has been accused of “foot dragging and vague promises” amid calls for urgent action on preparations on Brexit, including new customs posts to carry out checks on goods crossing the Irish Sea.

Britain seen gaining control over Irish policing

The 32 County Sovereignty Committee has said appointments of two senior figures from Britain’s PSNI police to An Garda Síochána represent a strengthening of direct control of the police in Ireland by British intelligence.

‘Inquiry’ seen as bid to give cover to broken promises

A Westminster committee has launched an inquiry to consider British government proposals on legacy, but it does not have the confidence of victims and relatives of people killed as a result of British state violence and collusion.

Rights being stolen as workers face arrest, fines

The coronavirus was used as an excuse to break up protests by retail workers this week as they sought their legal redundancy rights, despite the protestors adhering to social distancing requirements.

A wedding and two funerals

Between the years 1983 and 1987, twenty-five Republican funerals were attacked by the RUC and British troops. This was seen as a desecration of the most sacred ritual, the ritual of burying your dead with dignity.

Self evident that we need an all-island approach

Are we really going to have shops and hairdressers open and journey distances extended at different times north and south for political reasons?