Continuity Irish Republican Army Operate in the Same Country
Real Irish Republican Army
The Real IRA is a republican dissident militant organization operating in Northern Ireland.
Profile Contents
Overview
Narrative of the Organization's History
Organization
Leadership, Name Changes, Size Estimates, Resources, Geographic Locations
Strategy
Ideology, Aims, Political Activity, Targets, and Tactics
Major Attacks
First Attacks, Largest Attacks, Notable Attacks
Interactions
Foreign Designations and Listings, Community Relations, Relations with Other Groups, State Sponsors and External Influences
Maps
Mapping relationships with other militant groups over time
Contact MMP
Send a message to the Mapping Militants team
Download Full Profile as PDF
How to Cite
Mapping Militant Organizations. "Real Irish Republican Army." Stanford University. Last Modified August 2019. https://cisac.fsi.stanford.edu/mappingmilitants/content/mmp-real-irish-republican-army
Organizational Overview
Formed:1997
Disbanded:2012. The Real IRA announced a merger with three other dissident republican groups in 2012. The four groups merged to form the New IRA, which is still active as of 2019. On July 26, 2012, the Real IRA announced that its organization ceased to exist. [1]
First Attack:May 9, 1998: A dissident republican group carried out a bombing on the Royal Ulster Constabulary station in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. The militants were suspected members of the newly formed Real IRA. The blast resulted in no injuries (0 killed, 0 wounded).[2]
Last Attack:August 3, 2010: Real IRA militants forced a taxi driver to drive a 200-pound bomb to a police station in Derry, Northern Ireland. The bomb exploded, causing significant damage to the building and resulted in no casualties (0 killed, unknown wounded).[3]
Executive Summary
The Real Irish Republican Army (Real IRA, or rIRA) was a republican militant group that operated during and after the Troubles in Northern Ireland. It was formed in 1997 after militants opposing peace negotiations split from the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA).[1]The rIRA followed an extremist republican ideology; the group justified its use of violence with the 1919 Irish Declaration of Independence, which claimed the island of Ireland was an independent, sovereign nation[2]The group had cells throughout Ireland and Northern Ireland, and it carried out attacks in Ireland, Northern Ireland, and England. The rIRA's ultimate goals were to disrupt peace negotiations in Northern Ireland, secure a British withdrawal from Northern Ireland, and reunite Northern Ireland with the Republic of Ireland.[3]The Real IRA mounted its largest attack in 1998, and it engaged in hundreds of smaller attacks in the years after, including bombings, shootings, and kidnappings. In 2012, the Real IRA merged with three other dissident republican groups to form the New IRA.[4]
Group Narrative
The Real Irish Republican Army (Real IRA, or rIRA) was formed in 1997 as a splinter group of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA).[1]The Provisional IRA was one of the most active republican militant groups during the Troubles, an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland during the late 20th century. During this period, republican Catholic militants fought with unionist Protestant militants over the constitutional status of Northern Ireland. Republican dissidents believed Northern Ireland should be united with the Republic of Ireland and considered the British government to be an illegal occupying force. In contrast, unionists sought for Northern Ireland to remain in the United Kingdom. The conflict left approximately 3,600 people dead over several decades. [2]
After decades of waging terrorist campaigns against unionist targets, PIRA sued for peace in the late 1990s. PIRA leadership officially announced a ceasefire and began negotiating with the British government in July 1997.[3]Following the ceasefire, PIRA held a conference in County Donegal to discuss the direction of the organization. At the conference, PIRA Quartermaster General Michael McKevitt denounced the group's leadership and their decision to sue for peace. McKevitt resigned from his PIRA leadership role following the conference in October 1997.[4]In November, McKevitt, his wife, and dozens of ex-PIRA members who wished to continue fighting formed a new organization called Óglaigh na hÉireann, later nicknamed by the media the 'Real IRA' (rIRA).
As the rIRA began recruiting members and acquiring weapons, the political group 32 County Sovereignty Movement (32CSM) emerged in December 1997.[5]The group shared similar goals and ideology as the rIRA, and it defined itself as a 'political pressure group' devoted to removing British forces from Northern Ireland. One of the senior figures in the group was Bernadette Sands McKevitt, wife of Real IRA founder Michael McKevitt and sister of IRA 'martyr' Bobby Sands, who died on a prison hunger strike in 1981.[6]Members of 32CSM claimed to have no association with the rIRA, though many media and government outlets designated the rIRA as the armed wing of the 32CSM.[7]The exact connection between the two groups remains unclear. However, given the group's similar leadership, goals, and history, it is likely they had a close relationship.
On April 10, 1998, the political parties of Northern Ireland and Britain signed the Good Friday Agreement (GFA), which most historians mark as the end of the Troubles. The agreement created the Northern Irish Assembly, a governing body meant to make decisions previously made by the British government in London. This new government would allow power to be shared between unionists and nationalists.[8]While Irish republican political party Sinn Fein and the PIRA acknowledged the agreement, rIRA members viewed the GFA as intolerable. In response, rIRA published a manifesto with its principles in May 1998.[9]The group first rejected the PIRA's non-violent ceasefire agreement instituted 1997 and the GFA of 1998. Second, the rIRA objected to the partition of Ireland into Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Lastly, the group called for the removal of the British presence from Northern Ireland.
rIRA carried out several smaller bombings in the first half of 1998, none of which resulted in any casualties.[10]On August 15, 1998, the rIRA carried out the Omagh Bombing, which resulted in the greatest single loss of life in the Troubles. [11]rIRA militants set off a 500-pound car bomb in Omagh, Northern Ireland, killing 29 civilians. After taking ownership of the attack, the rIRA claimed that the civilian deaths were accidental and maintained that there was supposed to have been a warning sent to authorities to clear the streets.[12]
National backlash after the bombing was swift and immediate. Both Sinn Fein and the Provisional IRA issued condemnations of the attack.[13]Public outrage was so strong that Real IRA leader Michael McKevitt and his wife Bernadette Sands McKevitt were forced to move from their home in Dundalk Bay.[14]Three days after the attack, the rIRA announced that it had suspended all military operations. The group stated that it believed the continuation of its campaign in the face of the Omagh bombing was 'futile.'[15]
The rIRA's ceasefire did not last long. Soon after the Omagh bombing, the group began recruiting members and setting up training camps. In October 1999, Garda – the police service of Ireland – raided a training camp in County Meath and arrested ten suspected rIRA members.[16]Following the Omagh bombing, the rIRA no longer targeted civilian centers in Northern Ireland. Instead, it began to target symbols of British military and political power.[17]In September 2000, the rIRA carried out a missile attack on the headquarters of British intelligence agency MI6 in London.[18]No casualties were reported, although the building suffered significant structural damage. In March 2001, rIRA militants bombed the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) headquarters in London, injuring one and inflicting damage on the buildings.[19]Following the BBC bombing, the rIRA released its first public statement in years to mark the 85th anniversary of the Easter Uprising in Dublin. The statement lamented, "Partition has failed and those who attempt to uphold it will fail. As for republicans, we will continue to attack the problem at its root and make no apology for undertaking this necessary task."[20]A month after the released statement, the United States designated the Real IRA as a foreign terrorist organization.[21]
In August 2002, the rIRA killed its first victim since the Omagh bombing. A Protestant civilian worker died from an explosion targeting a British military base in Derry, Northern Ireland.[22]In the year following the attack, the rIRA experienced significant turmoil. In October 2002, dozens of rIRA militants in prison released a statement calling for the organization to disband. [23]In 2003, rIRA leader Michael McKevitt was tried and found guilty of 'directing terrorism and membership in an illegal organization'. He was sentenced to twenty years in prison. [24]McKevitt's arrest caused the organization to fall into disarray, as it lacked leadership and structure. Over the next several years, individual militants arranged several hoax bombings and killed a suspected ex-Sinn Fein informer, but did not engage in any major attacks.[25]
In September 2005, multiple republican militant groups (including PIRA) agreed to give up their weapons stockpiles and continue their non-violent approach towards peace in Northern Ireland. rIRA was one of only two republican groups that refused to take part in the disarmament, the other being the Continuity IRA.[26]
In November 2007, the rIRA announced it would start targeting the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). That month, it carried out two separate attacks against the PSNI, injuring several officers.[27]In 2008, rIRA leaders publicized that the group was about to launch a new campaign of attacks in Northern Ireland. Shortly after the announcement, the rIRA attacked and injured a PSNI officer in May 2008.[28] In 2009, rIRA gunmen attacked military barracks in County Antrim, killing two soldiers and wounding four others.[29]This was their largest attack since the Omagh Bombing in 1998.
In 2009, a splinter group called Oglaigh na hEireann (translated to "soldiers of Ireland") broke off from the Real IRA. The splinter allegedly occurred after disagreements arose between rIRA leadership and former rIRA leader Michael McKevitt.[30]These disagreements arose because older rIRA leadership claimed newer rIRA members were "more interested in criminality as a opposed to fighting the crown forces". After its formation, Oglaigh na hEireann pledged allegiance to McKevitt. It is uncertain what exact role McKevitt played in the organization. Although McKevitt was in imprisoned at the time of the split, his former trusted aide allegedly had control of the faction.[31]The split severely weakened the Real IRA.
From 2010 to 2012, the rIRA struggled to organize any major attacks. It carried out occasional punishment shootings, killing several ex-rIRA members and murdering prominent drug criminals that the rIRA claimed were endangering their communities. [32]Despite these attacks, the prominence of the organization diminished severely during this time. In 2011, the Independent Monitoring Commission (the international body established to monitor military activity in Northern Ireland) stated in its report that the rIRA had "gone out of business as a paramilitary group."[33]While some individual members were still active, the rIRA lacked any real organizational structure and leadership.
In 2012, the rIRA announced its plan to merge with three other dissident republican groups to form the 'New IRA.' The other groups joining the merger were Republican Action Against Drugs (RAAD), an east Tyrone republican group, and a group of previously non-aligned republican dissidents from Belfast.[34]In a released statement, the group claimed that the Irish people had continually "been sold a phoney peace." The group also called for the removal of British military and political interference from the country.[35]Government officials estimated that the New IRA had between 250-300 members at the time of its inception. On July 26, 2012, the Real IRA announced that the organization ceased to exist.[36]All former rIRA members had either joined the New IRA or resigned from the organization.
[4]Mooney, John; O'Toole, Michael (2004).Black Operations: The Secret War Against the Real IRA. Maverick House
Organizational Structure
Leadership, Name Changes, Size Estimates, Resources, Geographic Locations
Strategy
Ideology, Aims, Political Activities, Targets, and Tactics
Major Attacks
Disclaimer: These are some selected major attacks in the militant organization's history. It is not a comprehensive listing, but captures some of the most famous attacks or turning points during the campaign.
May 9, 1998: A dissident republican group carried out a bombing on the Royal Ulster Constabulary station in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. The militants were suspected members of the newly formed Real IRA. The blast resulted in no injuries (0 killed, 0 wounded).[1]
August 15, 1998: The rIRA set off a car bomb in the town of Omagh, Northern Ireland. The bomb killed 29 civilians and wounded hundreds of others. After the bombing, national and international backlash overwhelmed rIRA, prompting the group to announce a ceasefire three days after the bombing.[2]The casualty level was apparently the result of botched planning and poor communication.[3]The Omagh bombing was the greatest single loss of life during the Troubles[4](29 killed, 200+ injured).[5]
September 20, 2000: rIRA militants fired missiles at the MI6 headquarters in London. The attack caused significant structural damage to the intelligence agency but resulted in no casualties (0 killed, 0 wounded).[6]
February 21, 2001: rIRA militants set off an explosive device at a military base in west London. A 14-year old cadet was injured from the attack (0 killed, 1 wounded). [7]
March 4, 2001: The rIRA set off a bomb outside the British Broadcasting Channel (BBC) in London. The militants warned officials of the bomb to ensure no civilians were harmed (0 killed, 0 wounded).[8]
August 1, 2002: The rIRA set off an explosive device at an army base outside of Derry, Northern Ireland. David Caldwell, a civilian construction worker, was killed by the explosion. (1 killed, 0 wounded).[9]
April 4, 2006: The rIRA shot and killed Denis Donaldson, a former Sinn Fein member, at his home. Donaldson had just been expelled from Sinn Fein after it was revealed he had been a British intelligence informant for nearly two decades (1 killed, 0 wounded).[10]
November 2007: After announcing a campaign targeting policemen in Northern Ireland, rIRA militants shot and injured two policemen in November of 2007 (0 killed, 2 wounded).[11]
March 7, 2009: rIRA militants attacked military barracks in County Antrim. The militants murdered two soldiers and wounded four others. This attack was the largest the group had carried out since the Omagh bombing (2 killed, 4 wounded). [12]
February 24, 2010: The rIRA carried out a punishment shooting against one of its own members in Derry. The organization claimed that the member had been involved in drug dealing. The community of Derry reacted harshly against the rIRA, hosting a rally after the shooting and condemning the group (1 killed, 0 injured).[13]
Interactions
Foreign Designations and Listings, Community Relations, Relations with Other Groups, State Sponsors and External Influences
Maps
The project develops a series of interactive diagrams that "map" relationships among groups and show how those relationships change over time. The user can change map settings to display different features (e.g., leadership changes), adjust the time scale, and trace individual groups.
Source: https://cisac.fsi.stanford.edu/mappingmilitants/profiles/real-irish-republican-army
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