Tag: UVF
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The Resistance Men.
© Deirdre Younge. Introduction. ‘What were they trying to do around here .. create civil war?‘ (Willie Frazer, referring to the intelligence services operating in the 1970s in Armagh. (2016)) The British Government is introducing new Legacy legislation and has reached an agreement with the Irish Government on the issue. Inquests are to restart but…
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Nest of Spies.
1. Introduction. I remember being struck by a passage in the late Kennedy Lindsay’s book, ‘The British Intelligence Services In Action’ (1981). Lindsay, a Unionist politician, alleged that MI6: ‘has numerous agents and informants [in the Republic of Ireland], including many at high levels in the civil service, police, and armed services. The territory had been part…
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Kincora
“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed. Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice.” Proverbs 31:8-9 (NLV) Judge Hughes said of his inquiry into Kincora Boys’ Home and other care homes, in the 1980s that, “The conduct of the police, or…
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The complexities of Loyalism. By Roy Garland.
A ginger group in the Orange Order known as “Cell” was led by Canon Ernest Long who said “Cell” was taken from the idea of a small seed that could influence a larger group. I assume the larger group was the Orange Order. William McGrath joined Cell in the 1960s and Canon Long, was uncomfortable…
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The strange death of Harry Breen. By Deirdre Younge.
In April 2017, Village magazine published this article by Deirdre Younge which revealed another side to Chief Superintendent Harry Breen of the RUC. Breen was shot dead by the IRA in 1989. He served as Commander H Division (Armagh and parts of Down) from March 1988 to ’89. His death was the subject of the…
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The Gathering Storm.
In this article, Roy Garland explains how Loyalist leaders such as William McGrath were making dire predictions about the intentions of the IRA as the 50th anniversary of the 1916 Rising approached. Roy Garland witnessed these developments at first hand. Soon, he was dedicating himself to the peace process believing in the “interconnectednes between everyone…
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Tara’s roots.
In this article, Roy Garland describes the origins of Tara, an armed Loyalist paramilitary organisation. Garland was once a member of Tara. It was led by William McGrath. Tara was once part of the Orange Order. It had supporters in the Republic of Ireland and later linked up with the UVF. There were also international…
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Dublin-Monaghan bombings. [WebBook]
Introduction: Dublin City was rocked by three car bomb explosions on 17 May 1974. The devices detonated in a coordinated fashion at approximately 5.30; all within ninety seconds of each other. Twenty-six people and a full-term unborn child (Baby Doherty) were slaughtered. No warnings were provided. Ninety minutes later, a fourth car bomb exploded in…
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False flag.
In the September 2019 edition of Village magazine, Deirdre Younge described how MI5 fabricated a Loyalist arms importation to frighten the Dublin government. The MI5 ‘false flag’ operation was launched in 1993, on the verge of an IRA ceasefire Deirdre Younge was a reporter with Hibernia magazine and a Current Affairs Programmes Editor in RTE…
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From the Vaults: Billy Wright, 1996
In October 1996 Fortnight magazine published an article which asked: “What does Billy Wright think? Since the Combined Loyalist Military Command gave him the choice of exile or death, Wright has maintained that it is his thinking that got him into trouble with organisations he previously supported. Although he consistently denies that he is a…
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Gusty Spence
I met friends of Gusty Spence in the mid 1960s when I ran a small business that dad had formed in the early 1940s after I was born. I joined the Orange Order in the early 1960s, and often sat beside Gusty’s brother, who thought highly of him and said of someone who had criticised…
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The Collusion Spectrum. By Deirdre Younge.
In 2019 the BBC’s investigative ‘Spotlight’ programme added significantly to a body of evidence exposing widespread collusion across the Loyalist spectrum from the DUP to the UVF to MI5. Deirdre Younge revealed more in an article in Village magazine. It can be downloaded here:
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New Beginnings.
Roy Garland is the author of the biography of Gusty Spence, a founding member of the modern era UVF. After decades of violence, Spence embraced the peace process. In this article Roy Garland writes about some of the unlikely relationships which he saw blossom between former Loyalist and Republican paramilitaries, including Gusty Spence and Billy…
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A supplement to ‘A State in Denial’, taking the story of collusion to the 1990s. By Margaret Urwin. [WebBook.]
Margaret Urwin (née Kelly) has worked with Justice for the Forgotten, the organisation representing the families and survivors of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings, since 1993 and, for more than a decade, with the families of the victims of other cross-Border bombings. Justice for the Forgotten affiliated with the Pat Finucane Centre in December 2010.…
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Operation Kenova Part 1.
UPDATE: Freddie Scappaticci has passed away but Operation Kenova’s work goes on. Jon Boutcher’s first report is completed and on the PSNI’s ‘desk’. Now he is Chief Constable of the PSNI, Boutcher has left a decision on its publication to a designated police officer. SECOND UPDATE: The PSNI have announced they will publish Operation Kenova’s…
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An appalling vista: disturbing indications of Kitson’s foreknowledge of a third massacre of innocent civilians.Tragedy took fifteen lives including two children. By David Burke.
New evidence has emerged about the UVF’s bombing of McGurk’s Bar in Belfast in December 1971. The explosion caused the entire structure of the premises to collapse, killing fifteen Catholic civilians – including two children – and wounding seventeen more. It was the deadliest attack in Belfast during the Troubles. Brigadier (later General Sir) Frank…
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