Irish Republican News: Archives

June 29, 2023

Orange Order gears up for march madness

There have been condemnations after a member of the infamous Shankill Butcher gang was seen taking part in a sectarian march and putting up UVF paramilitary flags.

Council could move to end ‘pro-Nazi’ loyalist bonfire

The inherently sectarian, racist and violent campaign that lies at the heart of ‘Eleventh Night’ bonfires in the north of Ireland has been exposed by the contents of a bonfire builders’ hut in Belfast.

Recruitment posters opposed

There has been an outcry by unionists after republican activist group Lasair Dhearg said that its members had removed a Crown Force recruitment poster in Derry.

Fears of cover-up over RTÉ backhanders

There have been calls for a criminal investigation into Ireland’s state-run broadcaster amid a scandal over secret kickback payments to media figures believed to have been worth €50 million euro.

Martin’s NATO push backfires

Proposals for Irish membership of military alliances by the coalition government in Dublin have been overwhelmingly rejected by the Irish people.

This bill ‘extinguishes hope’

A letter by Belfast mother Rosemary McKenna-Thompson to US President Joe Biden, calling on him to consider the impact of Britain’s ‘Bill of Shame’ ending investigations into its war crimes in the North of Ireland.

The bedrock of Irish republicanism endures

An analysis read by Francis Mackey, national chairman of the 32 County Sovereignty Movement, at this year’s commemoration to mark the 102nd anniversary of the Sinnott’s Cross ambush.

‘The Three Volunteers’ – Carty, Crowley and Loughran

Sean Bresnahan of the Thomas Ashe Society in Omagh reflects on the lives of Paddy Carty, Dermot Crowley and Sean Loughran – The Three Volunteers – who died on active service for the Republic outside Omagh 50 years ago this week.

June 22, 2023

Top Tory holds talks with loyalist leaders

A senior Tory MP has been accused of holding secret talks with loyalist paramilitaries in an effort to buy off the terror gangs.

Innocent nurse becomes prop for PSNI smear

A civil action is to be taken against the PSNI for a shocking experience endured by a woman in Derry in what may have been an attempt to generate a lurid anti-republican headline.

Unionist hypocrisy marches on

The anti-nationalist and anti-Catholic bigotry of the unionist political establishment has ramped up as their marching season moves towards its climax next month.

Dublin reluctant to push for unity

Sinn Féin has rejected a claim by 26 County Taoiseach Leo Varadkar that a border poll should be avoided as it could be defeated.

Call for human rights action over legacy Bill

The 26 County government has a moral and legal obligation to take an international case against Britain if the Tory government’s effort to end investigations into its war crimes becomes law, a protest has heard.

New push to end internment

A prisoners’ welfare group has launched a campaign to highlight the effective internment of Irish republican prisoners who are spending years in jails on both sides of the border without going to trial.

New mural recasts Bloody Sunday campaign

Derry’s Bloody Sunday families have unveiled a new mural highlighting the only victim not to be completely exonerated by the second public Inquiry into the massacre.

Border poll will force all of us to face our biases

A fundamental lack of understanding between people North and South is the greatest barrier to reconciliation of this island.

June 15, 2023

Anger as Britain moves to shut down active legacy cases

Sinn Féin has labelled the timing of the amendments to British legacy legislation, currently making its way through Westminster parliament, as “cynical” and said it will “slam the door shut on victims” of the conflict.

Torture apology ‘not enough’

Some of the ‘Hooded Men’ who received a PSNI apology for their torture this week have dismissed it as “too little, too late” or rejected it outright.

Huge opposition to police’s inquest delay strategy

British state agencies have been called out for delaying the release of information about the murder of County Derry man Sean Brown so an inquest cannot be completed.

Volunteer accused of informing exonerated by IRA

An IRA Volunteer killed after he was accused of being an informer by the IRA’s internal security unit was later exonerated, the victim’s brother has revealed.

Family fears inquest could be halted

The family of a Catholic man killed by loyalists almost 30 years ago believe they will never find out the truth after the British government revealed plans to end inquests.

South Armagh remembers its heroes

Sinn Féin MP John Finucane responded to criticism of his participation in the annual commemoration for the IRA South Armagh Volunteers with a powerful and dignified speech in which he defended “the right to remember, and the right to commemorate”.

The murder of Wolfe Tone

In this 225th anniversary year of the 1798 rebellion, common sense should dictate the way we view the death of Ireland’s greatest patriot. By Paddy Cullivan (For the Irish Times).

Legalising lawlessness

Not a single reputable legal expert has expressed support for a bill which is concocted only to whitewash the actions of British military personnel here.

June 13, 2023

Torture victims receive PSNI apology

The Hooded Men have received an apology from the PSNI over their treatment after they were interned more than 50 years ago.

June 8, 2023

Focus on commemoration a distraction

Unionists are piling pressure on Sinn Féin MP John Finucane to withdraw from a commemoration of IRA Volunteers who died in the conflict as part of their unending campaign to depict Irish resistance to British rule as “terrorism”.

Saoradh condemns use of child informers amid Derry clashes

Saoradh representatives in Derry have been contacted by concerned parents following revelations that young people between the ages of 13-16 have been working as what has been termed “Juvenile Covert Human Intelligence Sources”.

Video captures harsh reality of loyalist gangs

A shocking video of a taxi driver believed by the PSNI police to be an ‘enforcer’ for drug deals by the East Belfast UVF has brought attention to their failure to tackle loyalist crime.

Partition’s tombstone is delivered

After years of wrangling, unionists have said a monument to the partition of Ireland will be placed at the Stormont Assembly buildings later this summer, despite it being condemned by nationalists as a testament to a century of bloody division and conflict.

MI5 isolation strategy ‘defeated’

Three republican internees have been been removed from isolation at Maghaberry prison after what supporters denounced as “harassment, intimidation and Kitson-like tactics” of the prison administration and their British overseers.

O’Neill wins further US backing for Good Friday Agreement

Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill is in Washington, DC in a bid to persuade the US government to urge British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to prioritise the restoration of the North’s powersharing political institutions.

The ethnic cleansing of the Highland Clearances

The Highland Clearances in Scotland were part of a process of agricultural change throughout Britain, but the late timing, the abruptness of the change from the Clan System in the Scottish Highlands and the brutality of many of the evictions gave the Highland Clearances particular notoriety.

Michelle O’Neill’s Washington visit a smart move

Rishi Sunak represents no-one in the north, has no legitimacy to speak for anyone here. Yet he is trying to concoct a secret deal with the DUP that will provide them with a fig leaf to cover a return to Stormont.

June 1, 2023

DUP ‘dinosaur’ predicts political ice age

After an election in which the nationalist share of the vote overtook the unionist one for the first time, a senior DUP figure has admitted it could be an “ice age” before powersharing ever returns to Belfast.

Three republicans interned

Saoradh has slammed what is says is the internment of three Tyrone republicans.

Failure to investigate murder ‘shocking and disgraceful’

The failures of the RUC/PSNI to properly investigate the sectarian murder of a north Belfast woman 47 years ago are “shocking and disgraceful”, the High Court has ruled.

Compensation Board insults victims

One of the survivors of the infamous 1975 Miami Showband massacre has said he has been retraumatised after a British government victims board assessed his suffering at “3.8 out of 10” and offered him “insulting” compensation.

UDA stakes out new homes against Catholics and rivals

UDA bosses have shrouded the outskirts of a new social housing complex with paramilitary flags as a means of marking territory for the loyalist gang.

End of civil war marked, but no closure for families

A ceremony to mark 100 years since the end of the Irish Civil War took place in the Garden of Remembrance in Dublin last weekend.

How the Civil War tore families apart

One hundred years ago this week, the Civil War came to an end. Peace settled on the country, but the conflict left a bitter legacy that not only divided the country politically but also broke families apart — and the effects reverberated through generations.

Inching towards the exit door

Frankly, there will be an audible sigh of relief in Westminster if it looks like Northern Ireland will be voted out of existence in the next few years.