Provisional Irish Republican Army and the Morality of Terrorism

Provisional Irish Republican Army and the Morality of Terrorism
Author: Timothy Shanahan
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
Total Pages: 256
Release: 2008-12-18
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0748635319

Is terrorism ever morally justified? How should historical and cultural factors be taken into account in judging the morality of terrorist acts? What are the ethical limits of state counter-terrorism?For three decades the Provisional Irish Republican Army waged an 'armed struggle' against what it considered to be the British occupation of Northern Ireland. To its supporters, the IRA was the legitimate army of Ireland, fighting to force a British withdrawal as a prelude to the re-unification of the Irish nation. To its enemies, the IRA was an illegal, fanatical, terrorist organization whose members were criminals willing to sacrifice innocent lives in pursuit of its ideological obsession. At the centre of the conflict were the then unconventional tactics employed by the IRA, including sectarian killings, political assassinations, and bombings that devastated urban centres - tactics that have become increasingly commonplace in the post-9/11 world.This book is the first detailed philosophical examination of the morality of the IRA's violent campaign, and of the British government's attempts to end it. Written in clear, accessible prose, it is essential reading for anyone wishing to acquire a deeper understanding of one of the paradigmatic conflicts of the late 20th century.

Fighting for Ireland?

Fighting for Ireland?
Author: M.L.R. Smith
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 341
Release: 2002-11-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1134713967

Fighting for Ireland? is the first in-depth account of the evolution of Irish Republican strategy. It is highly topical in the light of the faltering peace process and the growing speculation over the IRA's next move: further violence or a new non-violent strategy? This new, updated paperback edition is essential reading for those who wish to disentangle the complex issues and motives behind IRA violence. M.L.R. Smith challenges many assumptions about the IRA, pinpointing the organisation's successes as well as its missed opportunities. He demonstrates the tension the movement has experienced between ideology and strategic reality regarding the use of force, illustrating how doctrinal purity has sometimes hampered the IRA in the pursuit of its goals. Contrary to the Irish Republican movement's vigorous and assertive public face Smith uncovers an organisation characterised more by a sense of chronic insecurity than by certainty and continuity.

Inside the IRA

Inside the IRA
Author: Andrew Sanders
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
Total Pages: 288
Release: 2011-04-25
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0748646043

Would the 'real' IRA please stand up? Why, and how, the IRA splintered. The Real IRA, the Continuity IRA, the Irish National Liberation Army, the Official IRA and the Provisional IRA have all assumed responsibility for the struggle for Irish freedom over the course of the late-20th century. Yet as recently as 1969 there was only one Irish Republican Army trying to unify Ireland using physical force., Andrew Sanders explains how and why the transition from one IRA to several IRAs occurred, analysing all the dissident factions that have emerged since the outbreak of the Northern Ireland troubles. He looks at why these groups emerged, what their respective purposes are, and why, in an era of relative peace and stability in Northern Ireland, they seek to prolong the violence that cost over 3500 lives.

Defying the IRA?

Defying the IRA?
Author: Brian Hughes (Historian)
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 248
Release: 2016
Genre: History
ISBN: 1781382972

This book examines the grass-roots relationship between the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and the civilian population during the Irish Revolution. It is primarily concerned with the attempts of the militant revolutionaries to discourage, stifle, and punish dissent among the local populations in which they operated, and the actions or inactions by which dissent was expressed or implied. Focusing on the period of guerilla war against British rule from c. 1917 to 1922, it uncovers the acts of 'everyday' violence, threat, and harm that characterized much of the revolutionary activity of this period. Moving away from the ambushes and assassinations that have dominated much of the discourse on the revolution, the book explores low-level violent and non-violent agitation in the Irish town or parish. The opening chapter treats the IRA's challenge to the British state through the campaign against servants of the Crown - policemen, magistrates, civil servants, and others - and IRA participation in local government and the republican counter-state. The book then explores the nature of civilian defiance and IRA punishment in communities across the island before turning its attention specifically to the year that followed the 'Truce' of July 1921. This study argues that civilians rarely operated at either extreme of a spectrum of support but, rather, in a large and fluid middle ground. Behaviour was rooted in local circumstances, and influenced by local fears, suspicions, and rivalries. IRA punishment was similarly dictated by community conditions and usually suited to the nature of the perceived defiance. Overall, violence and intimidation in Ireland was persistent, but, by some contemporary standards, relatively restrained.

A Secret History of the IRA

A Secret History of the IRA
Author: Ed Moloney
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Total Pages: 644
Release: 2002
Genre: Ireland
ISBN: 9780393325027

A portrayal of the Irish Republican Army includes coverage of its associations with Qaddafi's regime, Margaret Thatcher's secret diplomacy with Gerry Adams, and the Catholic Church's negotiations with Republican leadership.

The Irish Republican Army

The Irish Republican Army
Author: Susie Derkins
Publisher: The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc
Total Pages: 68
Release: 2002-12-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780823938223

The profoundly sad and bitter story of Irish resistance to Britain’s occupation and administration of the six counties of Northern Ireland extends over 800 years and encompasses suffering on both sides of the conflict. The Catholic Irish, the Protestant Irish, and the British armed forces have, until recently, seemed caught up in an unbreakable cycle of violence and tragedy. Susie Derkins untangles this long history of grievance and retribution, while carefully examining the latest and most promising efforts by all sides to find peace and reconciliation.

The Provisional IRA

The Provisional IRA
Author: Tommy McKearney
Publisher: Pluto Press
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2011-06-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780745330747

This book analyzes the underlying reasons behind the formation of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA), its development, where this current in Irish republicanism is at present and its prospects for the future. Tommy McKearney, a former IRA member who was part of the 1980 hunger strike, challenges the misconception that the Provisional IRA was only, or even wholly, about ending partition and uniting Ireland. He argues that while these objectives were always the core and headline demands of the organization, opposition to the old Northern Ireland state was a major dynamic for the IRA’s armed campaign. As he explores the makeup and strategy of the IRA he is not uncritical, examining alternative options available to the movement at different periods, arguing that its inability to develop a clear socialist program has limited its effectiveness and reach. This authoritative and engaging history provides a fascinating insight into the workings and dynamics of a modern resistance movement.

The Intelligence War against the IRA

The Intelligence War against the IRA
Author: Thomas Leahy
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 357
Release: 2020-03-26
Genre: History
ISBN: 1108487505

Thomas Leahy investigates whether informers, Special Forces and other British intelligence operations forced the IRA into peace in the 1990s.

Irish Republican Army Manual of Guerrilla Warfare

Irish Republican Army Manual of Guerrilla Warfare
Author: Irish Republican Army
Publisher:
Total Pages: 168
Release: 2013-03-23
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9781937981853

This book is filled with strategies for guerilla warfare gained from first hand experiences of Irish Republican Army volunteers and regulars. Whether you are a student of political science or the military sciences, this book is an absolute must have for every library.

The Secret Army

The Secret Army
Author: J. Bowyer Bell
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 1102
Release: 2017-07-12
Genre: History
ISBN: 1351474456

The Secret Army is the definitive work on the Irish Republican Army. It is an absorbing account of a movement that has had a profound effect on the shaping of the modern Irish state. The secret army in the service of the invisible Republic has had a powerful effect on Irish events over the past twenty-five years. These hidden corridors of power interest Bell and inspired him to spend more time with the IRA than many volunteers spend in it. This book is the culmination of twenty-five years of work and tens of thousands of hours of interviews. Bell's unique access to the leadership of the republican movement and his contacts with all involved—British politicians, Irish politicians, policemen, arms smugglers, and others committed or opposed to the IRA—explain why The Secret Army is the book on the subject. This edition represents a complete revision and includes vast quantities of new information. Bell's book gives us vital insight into our times as well as Irish history. This edition of The Secret Army contains six new chapters that bring the history of this clandestine organization up to date. They are: The First Decade, The Nature of the Long War, 1979-1980"; "Unconventional Conflict, The Hunger Strikes, January 1980-October 3, 1981"; The Protracted Struggle, September 1981-January 1984"; "War, Politics, and the Split, January 1984-December 1986"; The Troubles as Institution, 1987-1990": and The Armed Struggle Transformed, 1991-1996, The End Game." In his new introduction, Bell reflects on his decades of research, the experiences he has had, and the people he has met during his extensive visits to Ireland.