Occupation of Cullaville

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Coordinates: 54°03′43.20″N 6°38′38.12″W / 54.0620000°N 6.6439222°W / 54.0620000; -6.6439222
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Occupation of Cullaville
Part of the Troubles
Occupation of Cullaville is located in Northern Ireland
Occupation of Cullaville
LocationCullaville, County Armagh, Northern Ireland
Coordinates54°03′43.20″N 6°38′38.12″W / 54.0620000°N 6.6439222°W / 54.0620000; -6.6439222
Date22 April 1993
17:00 (UTC)
Attack type
Armed occupation
WeaponsAssault rifles, heavy machine guns, 1 sniper rifle, 1 rocket launcher

The occupation of Cullaville took place on 22 April 1993, when 12 armed members of the

South Armagh Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) set up a checkpoint on the main crossroads of Cullaville, County Armagh, Northern Ireland
, isolating the small village for a two-hour period, despite the presence of a British Army watchtower some yards away. The IRA men withdrew before the security forces in the area could react.

Background

See also: Glasdrumman ambush

Since the mid-1970s, the

D day in World War II.[5] A member of the IRA in South Armagh later told author Toby Harnden that the group had made a detailed study of the watchtowers' blind spots, and they had concluded that the outposts could surveil only 35 per cent of the area in good weather conditions.[6] On 1 October 1992, 15 IRA members, armed with rifles and machine guns, set up a number of checkpoints around the south Armagh's village of Meigh without interference from British security forces.[7]

Cullaville action

On 22 April 1993, at approximately 17:00, a 12-man

Barret sniper rifle, a rocket launcher and a DShK heavy machine gun.[9] They made good use of dead ground
to conceal themselves from a British Army surveillance watchtower located barely 1 mile north of the village.[10] The South Armagh IRA were noted for their ability to take advantage of the terrain.[11] After two hours, the IRA left unmolested.[12] According to some claims, the watchtower was unmanned at the time of the IRA operation.[9] Other sources claim that the IRA intention was to lure British troops into an ambush.[10] On this occasion, the IRA unit had no support from the southern side of the border.[9]

Aftermath

There was a bitter reaction from parliamentary circles in both London and Dublin.

Gardaí numbers as unwise. He also remarked the lack of a "partnership between local authorities and local communities" in border areas as foreseen in the 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreement.[9]

See also

  • The Troubles in Cullaville
  • South Armagh Sniper (1990-1997)
  • Chronology of Provisional Irish Republican Army actions (1990-1999)

References

  1. ISBN 0-340-71736-X
    .
  2. ^ Deutsch, Richard (1975). Northern Ireland, 1968–73: 1974 – Volumen 3 de Northern Ireland, 1968–73: A Chronology of Events. Blackstaff Press, p. 18
  3. ^ Barzilay, David (1978). The British Army in Ulster, Volume 2. Century Books, p. 25
  4. ^ "After Dean was killed, some Army commanders concluded that it was not worth risking the lives of soldiers to prevent an IRA roadblock being set up." Harnden, page 172
  5. ISBN 0-340-71737-8
  6. ^ Harnden, p. 259
  7. ^ Fortnight, Issues 302–312, p. 106. Fortnight publications, 1992
  8. Evening Herald
    , 23 April 1993
  9. ^ a b c d Senead Éireann – 29 April 1993 Archived 16 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ a b c Commons Debate, 8 June 1993 – Column 196
  11. ^ Harnden, p. 385
  12. ^ a b Commons debate, 8 June 1993 – Column 184
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