Hugh Torney (Irish republican)

Hugh Torney
Born	Hugh Torney c. 1954
Died	(1996-09-03)3 September 1996 Lurgan, County Armagh
Other names	"Cueball Torney"
Organization	Irish National Liberation Army (INLA)
Political party	Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP)
Movement	Irish republicanism, socialism

Hugh Torney (c.1954 – 3 September 1996) was an Irish National Liberation Army (INLA) paramilitary leader best known for his activities on behalf of the INLA and Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP) in a feud with the Irish People's Liberation Organisation (IPLO), a grouping composed of disgruntled former INLA members, in the mid-1980s.

Early years

In his youth, Torney had been a member of the

The Irish Republican Socialist Party was formed under the beliefs that national liberation and class structure cannot be separated.[6] The INLA was the military force for the IRSP.^[7] When Torney became the leader of the INLA his biggest opposers splintered off and formed the opposing Republican group, the Irish People's Liberation Organization (IPLO) who backed the Republican Socialist Collective political party. The feuding between the two groups derived mainly over a power struggle as the IPLO tried to make the Republican Socialist Collective party the major republican-socialist organization in Northern Ireland. Following a truce between the INLA and IPLO, the IRA launched a mounting attack against the Irish People's Liberation Organization and the group was put down in the fall of 1992.

Following the formation of the

Torney's role in the killings of King and his allies led to a failed attempt on his own life in September 1994. UVF gunmen occupied Torney's Lower Falls home and held his family hostage while they awaited Torney's return. However the INLA leader, who had a reputation for being especially guarded about his personal safety, got wind of the event and did not return home, resulting in the UVF members abandoning their attempt and releasing Torney's family.^[11]

Operations

Common operational tactics deployed by previous INLA leaders included extortion, kidnapping, and racketeering.^[12] Under Torney rule, the INLA performed attacks in the form of shootings and bombings against people loyal to the British government and Protestant civilians. In 1982, Hugh was held responsible for a bombing that targeted British soldiers that resulted in the death of two children and one soldier. During the 1987 internal dispute within the INLA Hugh was involved in an attack on an opposition faction that killed twelve people before the death of Gerard Steenson brought the feud to an end.^[10] In June 1994 Torney ordained the killings of three Ulster Volunteer Force, a loyalist paramilitary organization, which led to retaliation killings of six Catholic civilians. Once Torney had been disbanded from the main INLA and created his own faction of the group his number two, Dessie McCleery, was murdered by the Gallagher faction of the INLA and on 9 June 1996.

Downfall

The beginning of the end of Hugh's tenure as the chief of staff for the INLA occurred on 4 April 1995. Hugh Torney, along with three other Belfast INLA members were transporting a large quantity of weapons and ammunitions near Dublin. However, the arms dealer they had purchased the weapons from informed the police of the whereabouts allowing authorities to raid the operation.^[13] The police fired stun grenades at the vehicle and arrested the four men inside, also discovering six assault rifles, twenty handguns and 2000 rounds of ammunition.^[14] Following his arrest, Torney stated in a Dublin court that there was a "de facto" INLA ceasefire being observed; although, it was a non-consultative decision with the membership, it was generally regarded as the case following Provisional IRA's recent "cessation of hostilities".^[15]

Due to the arrest of the organisation's head many INLA members criticised the judgement of the leadership and during the four months that he was in jail, Hugh Torney was denounced as an illegitimate leader, expelled from the INLA, and Gino Gallagher ascended as the new chief of staff.^[13] Angered upon release, Hugh formulated a new faction of the INLA known as the INLA-General Headquarters (INLA GHQ) composed mainly of his most loyal supporters. Within the nine-month feud between the INLA GHQ and the main Belfast faction led by Gallagher, six deaths due to violence occurred, including the ordered killing of Gino Gallagher by Hugh Torney's GHQ members.

Torney himself was shot and killed on 3 September 1996 in Lurgan by supporters of the Gallagher faction. He was 42 at the time of his death.^[16] With Torney dead the INLA-GHQ faction announced it was to disband on 9 September.^[17] Torney and Gallagher had been two of six people killed during the feud, including INLA and IRSP founder member John Fennell, as well as Dessie McCleery and Francis Shannon.^[17]

References