Gerry Adams had ‘command role in IRA’ and ‘fiefdom’ in Belfast, court told
By Danny Halpin, Press Association Law Reporter
Gerry Adams “had a command role in the IRA” and ran his own “fiefdom” in Belfast, a former member of British Army intelligence has told the High Court.
Known anonymously as witness A, the retired serviceman said that shortly after he arrived in Northern Ireland in 1972, he learned of Adams’s involvement in the IRA.
Giving evidence during a civil trial against the former Sinn Féin president, the witness said he had “a good faith belief” in information pointing towards Adams’ involvement with the organisation.
The case has been brought by victims of three bombings in England: Jonathan Ganesh, who was injured in the 1996 London Docklands bombing; John Clark, a victim of the 1973 Old Bailey bombing in London; and Barry Laycock, a victim of the 1996 Arndale shopping centre bombing in Manchester.
The three men allege that Adams was a leading member of the Provisional IRA (PIRA) on those dates, including of its Army Council, and are seeking £1 in damages.
Adams denies ever being in the Provisional IRA and is defending the claim.
In a statement for the trial, witness A said he first met Adams when he was arrested by British soldiers in 1973.
He said: “At this point, we realised that Adams was operating at a higher level in the IRA than once thought, given the fact he was with these other PIRA members when we arrested him, Adams must also have had a significant role.
“From this point onwards, I realised that Adams had a command role in the IRA regarding its strategy and terrorist operations.”
He also said that the Army Council “had overarching control of all PIRA activity”.
Witness A added: “My own beliefs are that Adams would not have been able to do what he did in the political arena if he had not been a member of the Army Council, and this includes all the time up to the Canary Wharf bomb in 1996.”
He continued: “I understand that the decision to bomb GB mainland would have involved Adams, given that he was a member of the Army Council.”
Witness A sat behind a screen as he was cross-examined on Wednesday.
James Robottom, for Adams, asked him: “You have not yourself seen any first-hand evidence that he was in the IRA, have you?”
Witness A replied: “I have spoken to people who were active in the IRA who had given information to me as to who else was involved.”
When challenged on whether he had direct evidence about Adams being in a brigade in Belfast, he said: “I had a good faith belief in the information we had that he was an active member of the IRA in that area at that time.”
Robottom also challenged him about his memory of when Adams was arrested by British soldiers in 1973.
He said: “Your evidence has been contaminated by all the things you have heard and read about Gerry Adams over the last 53 years.”
Witness A replied: “Absolutely not.”
Robottom asked: “Do you accept that your recollection is not reliable about Mr Adams?”
Witness A said: “As I tried to explain to you before, my recollection of the events of that are, I am confident, accurate.”
He also said he was “absolutely not” fabricating the story.
Earlier in the day, retired British Army officer Richard Kemp said he believes Adams to have been a member of the Provisional IRA based on intelligence reports he saw during his time serving in the country.
Speaking outside court after Kemp had given evidence, Sinn Féin MP John Finucane said the retired officer was “unable to provide a single document to back up any of the evidence that he says he saw”.
He added: “For me that was very noticeable and striking.”
The MP continued: “I am struck by the concessions that he did make around the fact that as we know only too well, especially with our experience back home, that intelligence can be misleading and there were examples of that put to him and he did accept that.”
The trial, before Justice Swift, is due to conclude later in March.
