Tag: British Army
Britain’s Failure To Proscribe Loyalist Extremist Groups
Britain’s failure to proscribe Loyalist extremist groups will feature in legacy court cases for years to come. Britain, of course, also stands accused of arming and funding Loyalist extremist groups during the conflict, but its failure to proscribe these from the start will be tested by litigation too. The British state’s defence that it was […]
New Lodge Six: New Evidence With Attorney General
Paper Trail Chairperson Niall Ó Murchú writes on the news of the new inquest for the New Lodge Six and their families. We were very pleased for the families when we learned of the news yesterday that the Attorney General for the North of Ireland has ordered a new inquest into the deaths of the […]
Battle of St. Matthew’s 50th Anniversary
The Battle of St. Matthew’s was a pivotal moment in our local history and we have much to learn from it still. The 27/28th June is the 50th anniversary of the battle around the parish church in Short Strand. 3 men were shot dead and over two dozen injured. The local area around Ballymacarrett and […]
Casual Collusion and a Tale of Two City Estates
Collusion between state forces and paramilitaries can take many forms. Rarely do we see such casual collusion evidenced in inky black and white, though; and, here, it went to the top. Two incidents. The same British Army Regiment. Just over 24 hours apart and a just a few of hundred yards away from each other. […]
British Information Policy and Propaganda 1971
Read about British Information Policy and Propaganda in the North of Ireland 1971 in these short papers. In July 1971, Clifford Hill was seconded by Britain’s covert propaganda unit, Information Research Department, to the Northern Ireland Office to promote British information policy and propaganda. In Stormont circles, he was known as “Cliff the Spy”. His […]
Press Release: Solicitors for the Family of Jean Smyth-Campbell
Kinnear & Co. Solicitors represent the family of Jean Smyth-Campbell, who was killed in a drive-by shooting by the undercover British Army Unit (the MRF), in June 1972. At the time Jean’s family were told that the IRA had carried out the attack. The RUC then parroted this falsehood to the inquest in November 1972. […]
Where Was MRF When McGurk’s Bar Was Bombed?
For over 10 years, the families have asked police investigators where was the British Army’s death-squad, MRF, when McGurk’s Bar was bombed. Every investigation by the police and Police Ombudsman’s Office in the 46 years since the atrocity, which claimed the lives of 15 civilians, have failed to even prove the existence of the Miltary Reaction […]
Patsy Kelly Murder, 1974 – Startling New Information Uncovered
Statement by the family of Patsy Kelly on the discovery of startling new information which points towards a cover-up by the British state. Startling new information relating to the 1974 abduction and murder of Independent Councillor, Patsy Kelly (right), from Trillick, Co. Tyrone, has been uncovered following a freedom of information request on behalf of […]
Podcast 6: Brian Nelson – Diminishing Responsibility?
In this podcast, we examine the early career of British soldier and Loyalist paramilitary, Brian Nelson. When the murky history of the Troubles is written, Brian Nelson’s name is assured of a place. His name has become synonymous with the word “collusion” as he was a double agent run by British military intelligence at the […]
Earliest Record of Operational MRF?
Is this the earliest record of an operational Military Reaction Force (MRF)? A British Army 39 Brigade Commander’s Diary from October 1971 could have uncovered the earliest operational record of the clandestine Military Reaction Force. We have other records naming the main players like Captain Arthur Watchus and Sergeant Clive Graham Williams from the beginning […]