Tag Archives: David Montgomery

8th March – Deaths & Events in Northern Ireland Troubles

Deaths in the Troubles, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Key Events & Deaths on this day in Northern Ireland Troubles

8th March

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Monday 8 March

1971

Members of the Official Irish Republican Army (OIRA) engaged in a gun battle with members of the Provisional IRA (PIRA). One man was killed. The feud between the two wings of the IRA had been developing ever since the Republic movement split on 11 January 1970.

Thursday 8 March 1973

The Border Poll

 image002.jpg

 

A referendum was held on whether or not the people of Northern Ireland wanted to remain part of the United Kingdom (UK). This referendum became known as the ‘Border Poll’. However, Nationalists boycotted the referendum and only 57 per cent of the electorate took part in the poll. It was not surprising therefore that, of those who took part, 98 per cent were in favour of maintaining the Union with Britain.

A British soldier guarding a polling station in the lower Falls area of Belfast was shot dead by the Irish Republican Army (IRA).

A Catholic civilian was found shot dead in an abandoned car in the Oldpark area of Belfast. He had been killed by Loyalist paramilitaries.

The IRA exploded two car bombs in London and injured over 200 people. (One person in the vicinity died a sudden death due to a heart problem; listed in appendix to Sutton.)

One of the bombs had been planted at the ‘Old Bailey’ court in London. Two other car bombs were diffused.

[Nine people were found guilty of the bombings on 14th November 1973. Among those found guilty was Gerry Kelly. Kelly was later to become a leading member of Sinn Féin and played a role in the negotiations that led to the Goody Friday Agreement on 10th April 1998  ]

There were bombs in Belfast and Derry. Loyalist paramilitaries carried out a raid on an Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) guard at a polling station in east Belfast and stole 8 British Army issue self-loading rifles (SLRs) and ammunition. The members of the guard claimed that they were ‘overpowered’ by the Loyalists.

Tuesday 8 March 1977

Eight members of the SAS were each fined £100 in a Dublin court for carrying guns without a certificate. The men had been found in the Republic of Ireland and were arrested.

Wednesday 8 March 1978

Thomas Trainor (29), a member of the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA), and Denis Kelly (31), a Catholic civilian, were shot dead by the Red Hand Commando (RHC) in Portadown, County Armagh.

[The RHC was a Loyalist paramilitary group with links to the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF).]

Sunday 8 March 1987

The body of Lorraine McCausland’s (23), a Protestant civilian, was found in a stream near a Tynedale loyalist club in north Belfast.

McCausland had been drinking in the club the night before her half-naked body was discovered. She had been beaten to death.

[The book ‘Lost Lives’ (2004; p1064) included a claim that “Reliable loyalist sources said the men who killed her belonged to the UDA”. However, currently (2007) the motivation for the killing remains unclear.]

Tuesday 8 March 1988

A car believed to belong to those killed in Gibraltar was found in Marbella and was discovered to contain 140 pounds of high explosives.

Wednesday 8 March 1989

     

Miles Amos & Stephen Cummins

The Irish Republican Army (IRA) killed two soldiers and injured six others in a landmine explosion on the Buncrana Road near Derry. The Emergency Provision Act was renewed in the House of Commons.

Monday 8 March 1993

Patrick Mayhew, then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, welcomed the speech made by Dick Spring, then Tánaiste (deputy Irish Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs), on 5 March 1993. Mayhew said that Spring was someone he could “do business with”.

Wednesday 8 March 1995

Michael Howard, then British Home Secretary, lifted exclusion orders against 16 people. The orders were made under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) announced that security barriers in Belfast city centre would be removed.

Friday 8 March 1996

David Cook, then chairman of the Police Authority of Northern Ireland, and Chris Ryder, then a Police Authority member, were both dismissed from their positions on the Authority by Patrick Mayhew, then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. The two men had earlier lost a vote of confidence.

Saturday 8 March 1997

or

Sunday 9 March 1997

 The Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF) planted firebombs in the offices of the Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) in Banbridge and Newcastle, which caused serious damage.

[The attacks were believed to be a response to the marketing of the whole of Ireland as a tourist destination by the Northern Ireland Tourist Board in conjunction with Bord Fáilte (the tourist board in the Republic of Ireland). Many Loyalists are opposed to cross-border co-operation of any kind.]

There were demonstrations in support of Roisín McAliskey, then being held in prison awaiting a decision about extradition, in Dublin, London, New York, Washington, and a number of other cities.

Sunday 8 March 1998

Loyalist paramilitaries carried out a bomb attack on the home of a Catholic man and his Protestant partner in Larne, County Antrim. The man claimed that attack was sectarian and blamed local members of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA); he said that he was involved in a ‘run-in’ (a fracas) with a leading Loyalist figure the previous week.

The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) said that no motive had been established for the attack.

The Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF) issued threats against Protestant churchmen, business leaders and politicians whom it claimed were “colluding” with the peace process. In a ‘policy document’ the LVF expressed support for Ian Paisley, then leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), saying “Paisley has got it absolutely right”.

Gerry Adams, then President of Sinn Féin (SF), conceded that there was no prospect of an imminent united Ireland. An article written by Adams appeared in the Ireland on Sunday (a Republic of Ireland newspaper) set out the minimum demands that would have to be met before SF would sign any agreement.

An opinion  poll published in the same paper reported that 71 per cent of people in the Republic of Ireland wanted to see a united Ireland.

Monday 8 March 1999

Treaties Signed

The British and Irish governments signed four international treaties providing the legal framework for the establishment of the associated institutions of devolved government in Northern Ireland. The treaties covered: the six North-South implementation bodies; the North-South Ministerial Council; the British-Irish Council; and the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference.

David Trimble, then First Minister Designate, reacted angrily to Marjorie (Mo) Mowlam’s, then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, announcement extending the deadline for the creation of the Northern Ireland Executive until Easter week (2 April 1999).

Sinn Féin (SF) also criticised the delay.

Bertie Ahern, then Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister), met with Gerry Adams, then President of SF, in Government Buildings in Dublin.

Loyalists carried out a ‘pipe-bomb’ attack on the home of a family in Portadown, County Armagh

. It was disclosed that the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) had advised Gerry Adams of a threat to his life from dissident Republicans.

On International Women’s Day, the President, Mrs McAleese, said “skewed, twisted and unhealthy” thinking and teaching about the role of women over generations had left an obstacle course of impediments to their equal treatment.

A special debate in Parliament Buildings, Stormont, was among many events to mark the day on both sides of the Border.

Thursday 8 March 2001

Political Talks in Northern Ireland

Tony Blair, then British Prime Minister, and Bertie Ahern, then Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister), held new talks in Belfast with the political parties. It appeared that the two governments were resigned to being unable to achieve any breakthrough deal before the British general election.

However the two men hoped for an interim agreement to keep the peace process alive.

The Irish Republican Army (IRA) stated that it was willing to meet with John de Chastelain (Gen.), then head of the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning (IICD).

[This was to be the first meeting since June 2000. Most Unionists were not impressed by the IRA offer of talks and demanded action on disarmament.]

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Remembering all innocent victims of the Troubles

Today is the anniversary of the death of the following people killed as a results of the conflict in Northern Ireland

“To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die

– Thomas Campbell

To the innocent on the list – Your memory will live  forever

– To  the Paramilitaries  –

There are many things worth living for, a few things worth dying for, but nothing worth killing for.

14 People   lost their lives on the 8th March between 1971 – 1993

 

  

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08 March 1971


 Charles Hughes,   (26)

Catholic
Status: Irish Republican Army (IRA),

Killed by: Official Irish Republican Army (OIRA)
Shot while leaving house, Leeson Street, Lower Falls, Belfast. Official Irish Republican Army (OIRA) / Irish Republican Army (IRA) feud.

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08 March 1972
 Eamon Gamble,  (27)

Catholic
Status: non-specific Republican group (REP),

Killed by: non-specific Republican group (REP)
Died one month after being injured in an explosion at temporary council offices in school hall, Keady, County Armagh. Explosion occurred on 6 February 1972.

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08 March 1972


 Joseph Jardine,   (44)

Protestant
Status: Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Off duty. Shot at his workplace, Ministry of Agriculture office, Middletown, County Armagh.

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08 March 1973


 David Glennon,   (45)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: non-specific Loyalist group (LOY)
Found shot in abandoned car, Summer Street, Lower Oldpark, Belfast

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08 March 1973
 John Green,   (21)

nfNI
Status: British Army (BA),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Shot by sniper while guarding polling station, Slate Street School, Lower Falls,

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08 March 1973
 Joseph Leahy,  (31)

nfNI
Status: British Army (BA),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Died two days after being injured when detonated booby trap bomb in derelict house, Mullaghbawn, near Forkhill, County Armagh.

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08 March 1975
 Michael Adamson,  (23)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)
Shot at his home, Clifton Drive, off Cliftonville Road, Belfast.

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08 March 1978
 Thomas Trainor,  (29)

Catholic
Status: Irish National Liberation Army (INLA),

Killed by: Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)
Shot from passing motorcycle shortly after leaving Department of Health and Social Services office, Armagh Road, Portadown, County Armagh.

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08 March 1978
 Denis Kelly,   (31)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)
Shot from passing motorcycle shortly after leaving Department of Health and Social Services office, Armagh Road, Portadown, County Armagh.

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08 March 1984


 David Montgomery,  (24)

Protestant
Status: Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Off duty. Shot at his workplace, a petrol station, Airport Road, near Moira, County Down.

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08 March 1989


 Miles Amos,  (18)

nfNI
Status: British Army (BA),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Killed in land mine attack, while on British Army (BA) mobile patrol, Buncrana Road, near Derry.

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08 March 1989


 Stephen Cummins,   (24)

nfNI
Status: British Army (BA),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Killed in land mine attack while on British Army (BA) mobile patrol, Buncrana Road, near Derry.

  —————————————————————————

08 March 1990


 Thomas Jamison,   (40)

Protestant
Status: Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Off duty. Shot while driving his firm’s lorry, Tullynure, near Donaghmore, County Tyrone.

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08 March 1993
 Nigel McCollum,   (25)

Protestant
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Killed in mortar bomb attack on Keady British Army (BA) / Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) base, County Armagh. Construction worker at the base.

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10th February – Deaths & Events in Northern Ireland Troubles

Deaths in the Troubles, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Key Events & Deaths on this day in Northern Ireland Troubles

10th February

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Thursday 10 February 1972

  

Two British soldiers were killed in a land mine attack near Cullyhanna, County Armagh.. An IRA member was shot dead during an exchange of gunfire with RUC officers.

Saturday 10 February 1973

Two members of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) were killed in a premature explosion near Strangford, County Down.

Monday 10 February 1975

The Irish Republican Army (IRA) Truce

Two Catholic civilians were shot dead by Loyalist paramilitaries in a gun attack on Hayden’s Bar, near Pomeroy, County Tyrone. A Catholic civilian was shot dead by Loyalists in Belfast. The renewed Irish Republican Army (IRA) ceasefire began.

[The ceasefire was to last officially until 23 January  however there were a number of incidents during 1975 involving members of the IRA. During the period of the ceasefire the British government and the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) denied that a deal had been made with the IRA. Sinn Féin (SF) and the IRA said a 12 point plan had been agreed with the British. Some of the elements of this alleged deal were to become apparent such as the setting up of ‘incident centres’ and a reduction in security force activity in Nationalist areas.]

Thursday 10 February 1977

Those members of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) who were arrested at the end of the Balcombe Street siege in London were convicted of six murders.

Crime - Balcombe Street Seige...Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Robert Mark (second r) talks to policemen on the corner of Balcombe Street, Marylebone, near the flat where a group of gunmen are holding a middle-aged couple hostage ... Crime - Balcombe Street Seige ... 08-12-1975 ... London ... Great Britain ... Photo credit should read: PA Photos/PA Archive. Unique Reference No. 4268185 ...

[The Balcombe Street siege had begun on 6 December 1975.]

See Balcombe Street siege

Sunday 10 February 1980

Betty Williams, one of the founding members of the Peace People, resigned from the organisation for family reasons.

[There was speculation that there had been serious disagreements among the main members of the organisation. On 5 March 1980 another member of the Peace People, Peter McLachlan, also resigned.]

Tuesday 10 February 1987

An opinion poll published in the Daily Express (a British newspaper) found that 61 per cent of the British public were in favour of British withdrawal from Northern Ireland.

Saturday 10 February 1990

A Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) patrol came under gunfire on the Shankill Road, Belfast. The shooting incident was attributed to the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) which, it was claimed, was resentful of the work of the Stevens Inquiry.

Hugh Annesley, then Chief Constable of the RUC, issued a strategy document for the future of the RUC.

Monday 10 February 1992

The British government sent an extra battalion of British Army troops to Northern Ireland.

Wednesday 10 February 1993

Albert Reynolds, then Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister), nominated Gordon Wilson to become a member of the Irish Senate (the upper house of the Irish Parliament).

[Gordon Wilson had been injured, and his daughter killed, in the Enniskillen bomb on 8 November 1987.]

Thursday 10 February 1994

McGlinchey Killed

Dominic McGlinchey, former leader of the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA), was shot dead by three gunmen in Drogheda, Republic of Ireland.

 It is not clear which organisation was responsible for the killing

Saturday 10 February 1996

John Bruton, then Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister), announced that the Irish Government was breaking off ministerial contact with Sinn Féin (SF) in the light of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) bombing in London on 9 February 1996.

Monday 10 February 1997

The Irish Republican Army (IRA) left a large bomb on the outskirts of Strabane, County Tyrone. The bomb was defused by the British Army.

Ed Turner, then Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) mayor of Strabane, said that in light of the attempted bombing he would not be recommending anyone to invest in the town. His statement drew criticism from Nationalists. Gerry Adams, then President of Sinn Féin (SF), sent a fax to John Major, then British Prime Minister, requesting talks between SF and the British government.

Tuesday 10 February 1998

Robert Dougan (38), a leading Loyalist, was shot dead in Dunmurry near Belfast.

[It was believed that Dougan was a leading member of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA). While no group claimed responsibility for the killing Republican paramilitaries were involved and the Irish Republican Army (IRA) were later blamed by the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) for the death. The killing of Dougan (and Brendan Campbell on 9 February 1998) led to the expulsion of Sinn Féin (SF) from the multi-party talks on 20 February 1998.]

Mark Fulton, considered to be a leading Loyalist figure, was attacked by a gunman who fired two shots at him in the Redmondville estate, Portadown, County Armagh. Fulton escaped injury but blamed the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) for the attack. This claim was denied by David Ervine, then leader of the Progressive Unionist Party (PUP).

Wednesday 10 February 1999

The Belfast Telegraph (a Belfast based newspaper) published the results of an opinion poll. The poll showed that, of Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) supporters questioned, 63 per cent approved of David Trimble, then leader of the UUP.

Saturday 10 February 2001

There was a pipe-bomb attack on a Catholic home in Derry. A couple and their two nieces, aged five and three, escaped injury when the device was thrown through the kitchen window of their home in the Waterside area. It exploded, causing minor damage to the house. The attack was carried out by Loyalist paramilitaries.

Sunday 10 February 2002

There was stone throwing in the Arthur Bridge area of the Whitewell Road, north Belfast. The disturbances happened during the evening and followed on from rioting on Saturday (9 February 2002).

Pupils from the Holy Cross Girls’ Primary School in Ardoyne, north Belfast, travelled to County Galway to begin a holiday as guests of Peacock’s Hotel. The management of the hotel had made the offer of the holiday following incidents during 2001 when the school was blockaded by Loyalist protesters.

 

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Remembering all innocent victims of the Troubles

Today is the anniversary of the death of the following  people killed as a results of the conflict in Northern Ireland

“To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die

– Thomas Campbell

To the innocent on the list – Your memory will live  forever

– To  the Paramilitaries  –

There are many things worth living for, a few things worth dying for, but nothing worth killing for.

12  People   lost their lives on the 10th February  between  1972 – 1998

  —————————————————————————

10 February 1972


 Joseph Cunningham,   (26)

Catholic
Status: Irish Republican Army (IRA),

Killed by: Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC)
Shot during gun battle, O’Neill’s Road, Newtownabbey, County Antrim.

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10 February 1972


 Ian Harris,  (26)

nfNI
Status: British Army (BA),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Killed in land mine attack on British Army (BA) mobile patrol, Cullyhanna, County Armagh.

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10 February 1972


 David Champ,  (23)

nfNI
Status: British Army (BA),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Killed in land mine attack on British Army (BA) mobile patrol, Cullyhanna, County Armagh

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10 February 1973
 Leonard O’Hanlon,  (23)

Catholic
Status: Irish Republican Army (IRA),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Died in premature bomb explosion in the grounds of Castleward National Trust Estate, near Strangford, County Down.

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10 February 1973
 Vivienne Fitzsimmons,   (17)

Catholic
Status: Irish Republican Army (IRA),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Died in premature bomb explosion in the grounds of Castleward National Trust Estate, near Strangford, County Down.

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10 February 1975


 Joseph Fitzpatrick,   (19)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: non-specific Loyalist group (LOY)
Road sweeper. Shot while sweeping street, Cooke Place, off Ormeau Road, Belfast

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0 February 1975


 Arthur Mulholland,  (65)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)
Shot during gun attack on Hayden’s Bar, The Rock, near Pomeroy, County Tyrone

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10 February 1975


 Eugene Doyle,   (18)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)
Shot during gun attack on Hayden’s Bar, The Rock, near Pomeroy, County Tyrone

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10 February 1980


 Hugh Maguire, (9)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: not known (nk)
Killed during street disturbances, Springfield Road, Ballymurphy, Belfast. Confrontation between local people and British Army (BA) patrol.

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10 February 1981
 David Montgomery,  (27)

Protestant
Status: Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Off duty. Shot at his workplace, a timber yard, Strand Road, Derry.

 —————————————————————————

10 February 1994


 Dominic McGlinchey,  (42)

Catholic
Status: ex-Irish National Liberation Army (xINLA),

Killed by: not known (nk)
Former leader of Irish National Liberation Army (INLA). Shot while at public telephone kiosk, Hardmans Gardens, Drogheda, County Louth.

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10 February 1998


 Robert Dougan,  (38)

Protestant
Status: Ulster Defence Association (UDA),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Shot, while sitting in his stationary car, outside Balmoral Textiles Ltd, Station View, off Upper Dunmurry Lane, Dunmurry, near Belfast, County Antrim.

 —————————————————————————

 

27 th January – Deaths & Events in Northern Ireland Troubles

Deaths in the Troubles, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

Key Events & Deaths on this day in Northern Ireland Troubles

27th January

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Monday 27 January 1969

 Political Developments, Civil Rights Campaign

Wednesday 27 January 1971

The body of a man who had been shot dead was found in Belfast.

Thursday 27 January 1972

 

Two Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) officers, Peter Gilgun (26) and David Montgomery (20), were shot dead in an attack on their patrol car in the Creggan Road, Derry.

The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) association in Derry announced that it was going to hold a public religious rally at the same place, on the same date and at the same time, as the civil rights march planned for 30 January 1972.

The British Army and the Irish Republican Army (IRA) were engaged in gun battles near Forkhill, County Armagh. British troops fired over 1,000 rounds of ammunition.

 

Monday 27 January 1975

The Irish Republican Army (IRA) planted seven time bombs at locations across London. At 6.30pm a bomb exploded at Gieves, the military outfitters, in Old Bond Street. At 9.30pm bombs exploded at the Moreson chemical plant in Ponders End and a disused gas works in Enfield. Only minimal damage was caused by these two bombs.

Two further bombs exploded in Kensington High Street and Victoria street; two people were injured. A warning was given of a bomb in Putney High Street and a British Army bomb-disposal officer was able to defuse the device. A warning was also given for a bomb in Hampstead and it was defused.

The IRA also exploded a bomb in Manchester which injured 26 people.

Tuesday 27 January 1976

Two Protestant civilians were shot dead during a gun attack on Farmer’s Inn, Dunmurry, near Belfast. The attack was carried out by Republican paramilitaries.

Wednesday 27 January 1982

The coalition government of Fine Gael (FG) and the Irish Labour Party in the Republic of Ireland collapsed when independent Teachta Dála (TDs; members of Irish Parliament) voted against proposed tax increases on items such as petrol, alcohol, and tobacco.

Sunday 27 January 1991

The Irish Republican Army (IRA) carried out two incendiary bomb attacks on shops in Belfast.

[Richard Needham, then a Northern Ireland Office (NIO) Minister, later announced that £25 million would be redirected from social and economic schemes to pay compensation for the damage.]

Monday 27 January 1992

Peter Brooke, then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, announced that it was not possible at that time to launch “fresh substantive talks

Wednesday 27 January 1993

The Irish government established a new committee to monitor Northern Ireland policy.

Thursday 27 January 1994

Two Catholics Killed by Loyalists

  

The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) shot dead Cormac Mac Dermott (31), a Catholic civilian, and wounded his wife in a gun attack in Ballymena, County Antrim.

The Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF), a cover name (pseudonym) used by the Ulster Defence Association (UDA), shot dead John Doherty, (51), a Catholic civilian, in his home in the Ormeau Road, Belfast. The RUC shot dead a Protestant civilian during an attempted robberin in County Down.

The Irish Republican Army (IRA) planted three incendiary devices in stores in Oxford Street, London.

Friday 27 January 1995

John Bruton, then Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister), and Dick Spring, then Tánaiste (deputy Irish Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs), held their first formal meeting with representatives of Sinn Féin (SF).

Monday 27 January 1997

The Irish Republican Army (IRA) carried out a ‘rocket’ attack on a Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) Landrover patrol in Toomebridge, County Antrim. There were no injuries.

Patrick Mayhew, then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, said that representatives of the Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) and Ulster Democratic Party (UDP) could remain at the Stormont talks. Mayhew also warned the IRA that “we will pursue you with every means open to us under the law”.

 

It was reported on the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) programme Newsnight that the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) had commissioned a television advertisement which compared the situation in Northern Ireland to that in Nazi Germany.

[Following complaints that the comparison was misleading the advertisement was dropped.]

Roisin McAliskey

 

 

Three Irish Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) paid a visit to Roisín McAliskey in Holloway prison, England. McAliskey, who at that time was six months pregnant and was being held prior to a decision about her possible extradition to Germany.

Tuesday 27 January 1998

A Catholic man, employed by a taxi firm in North Belfast, escaped death when the weapon used by a Loyalist gunman jammed. The attack took place at around 3.00am and the Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF) was believed to be responsible.

The Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action (NICVA) announced that the LVF had issued death threats against a number of Catholic cross-community workers in the mid-Ulster area.

The funeral took place of John McColgan in Belfast.

Second day of the multi-party talks at Lancaster House in London. The British and Irish governments introduced a new discussion document on the proposed nature of cross-border bodies. While the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) and Sinn Féin (SF) welcomed the document, the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) rejected the proposals as a move back to the Framework Document.

 

At a press conference Jeffrey Donaldson, then UUP Member of Parliament (MP), tore up a copy of the Framework Document which prompted some laughter from David Trimble, then leader of the UUP.

[When this item was reported in the news it followed emotional scenes of the funeral of John McColgan and led to a number of protests about the behaviour of the two UUP MPs.]

The two governments also issued a document on the proposed east-west structures (Council of the Isles). The governments said that it was up to the parties to hammer out an agreement on the basis of the papers before them. Following the main session of the day, Tony Blair, then British Prime Minister, went to Lancaster House in the evening to meet with all the parties and to urge them to engage with each other and to reach a compromise.

The cost of running the multi-party talks was revealed in a written answer to a parliamentary question. The costs were: £675,000 paid in total to elected delegates, £675,000 paid in allowances and research grants, £180,000 on party support staff, payments for the three chairmen amounted to £320,000 in salaries, £250,000 for accommodation, and £418,000 in travel expenses.

Between June and November of 1997 the Irish government had contributed £1.4 million towards the costs of the talks process. Five Labour Members of Parliament (MPs) held a meeting in Derry with relatives of the victims of ‘Bloody Sunday’. [An announcement of a new inquiry into the events in Derry on 30 January 1972 was made on 29 January 1998.]

Wednesday 27 January 1999

Eamon Collins Killed

Eamon Collins, a former member of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), was found dead near his home on the outskirts of Newry, County Down.

[Due to his injuries it was initially thought that he had been the victim of a traffic accident, however it was later confirmed that he had been beaten and stabbed to death. Collins had acted as an informer on behalf of the security forces. He was also the author of a book entitled ‘Killing Rage’ that described his involvement with the IRA.

No group admitted responsibility for the killing although Republican paramilitaries were thought to have been involved.

Ian Paisley, then leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), used the protection of parliamentary privilege to name 20 people he claimed were involved in the Kingsmills killings on 5 January 1976.

See Kingsmill Page

Paisley claimed that the people were named in internal Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) documents of the time.

[The RUC later denied that the information came from a police dossier.]

The Conservative Party introduced a motion in the House of Commons calling for an end to the early release of paramilitary prisoners until ‘punishment’ attacks had stopped. The motion was defeated.

Sunday 27 January 2002

There was a petrol bomb attack on the home of a Catholic family in the Serpentine area of north Belfast. The family escaped injury. The householder claimed that there had been over 20 attacks on the house in the previous 18 months. He stated that the attacks were because the family were Catholic and also because he was a trade union representative.

There was a ceremony in the Waterfront Hall, Belfast, to remember the victims of the Holocaust. The event was attended by David Trimble (UUP), then First Minister, and Mark Durkan (SDLP), then Deputy First Minister. The ceremony marked the 57th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz.

See The Holocaust history and background

 

 —————————————————————————

Remembering all innocent victims of the Troubles

Today is the anniversary of the death of the following  people killed as a results of the conflict in Northern Ireland

“To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die

– Thomas Campbell

To the innocent on the list – Your memory will live  forever

– To  the Paramilitaries  –

There are many things worth living for, a few things worth dying for, but nothing worth killing for.

12  People   lost their lives on the 27th January  between  1971– 1999

————————————————————

27 January 1971
 John Kavanagh,   (28)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Found shot by Blackstaff River, off Roden Street

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27 January 1972


 Peter Gilgunn,  (26)

Catholic
Status: Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Shot during gun attack on Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) patrol car, Creggan Road, Derry.

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27 January 1972


 David Montgomery, (20)

Protestant
Status: Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Shot during gun attack on Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) patrol car, Creggan Road, Derry.

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27 January 1976
 Andrew McGilton,   (22)

Protestant
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: non-specific Republican group (REP)
Shot during gun attack on Farmer’s Inn, Collin Glen Road, Collin, Belfast.

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27 January 1976
 Peter Armstrong,   (22)

Protestant
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: non-specific Republican group (REP)
Shot during gun attack on Farmer’s Inn, Collin Glen Road, Collin, Belfast.

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27 January 1977


 Patrick McNulty,   (30)

Catholic
Status: Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC),

Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Off duty. Shot outside garage, Strand Road, Derry.

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27 January 1984


 Daniel McIntyre,   (28)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)
Shot from passing car while walking along Manor Drive, Lurgan, County Armagh

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27 January 1991


 Sean Rafferty, (44)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF)
Shot at his home, Rosapenna Court, off Cliftonville Road, Belfast.

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27 January 1994


 John Doherty,   (51)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF)
Shot at his lodgings, Candahar Street, Ballynafeigh, Belfast.

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27 January 1994


 Cormac McDermott,   (31)

Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)
Shot at his home, Fisherwick Gardens, Ballymena, County Antrim

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27 January 1994
 Robin Maxwell, (27)

Protestant
Status: Civilian (Civ),

Killed by: Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC)
Shot, during attempted robbery at petrol filling station, New Road, Donaghadee, County Down.

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27 January 1999


 Eamon Collins, (45)

Catholic
Status: ex-Irish Republican Army (xIRA),

Killed by: non-specific Republican group (REP)
Found beaten and stabbed to death, at the junction of Watsons Road and Dorans Hill, Newry, County Down.

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