Sinn Fein Arrests, Kevin McGuigan murder
Sinn Fein/PIRA Hench-man
Bobby Storey has been arrested over the murder of former IRA man Kevin McGuigan
Sr.
Mr McGuigan Sr was shot dead
at his home in east Belfast last month, and police said members of the
Provisional IRA were involved in the killing.
3 leading Sinn Fein/PIRA members arrested over cowardly murder
Mr Storey was one of three
men, aged 59, 45 and 58, arrested by police in north and west Belfast on
Wednesday 9/9/2015.
The other two arrested,
Eddie Copeland and Brian Gillen, are also well-known republicans.
Mr Storey, a former PIRA
prisoner, is the northern chairman of Sinn Féin.
In 2005, Ulster Unionist
Party (UUP) MP David Burnside told the House of Commons under parliamentary
privilege that Mr Storey was the head of intelligence for the PIRA.
Mr Storey is a close ally of
Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams TD and has an office at Stormont.
Defender
MI6 Agent Martin McGuinness (see NOTE below) said he was "surprised" to learn about Mr Storey's arrest, however,
this is highly unlikely and actually suggests that the arrests may be a
smoke-screen to suggest that Sinn Fein/PIRA are actually being policed and not
protected by The British Security Services.
"Bobby Storey is a
valued member of Sinn Féin/PIRA’s core leadership," the British deputy
first minister said.
"He has played a
leading role in the development of Sinn Féin/PIRA’s peace strategy and is a
long-standing and loyal supporter, defender and advocate of the peace and
political processes.
"We look forward with
confidence to his early release."
The Police Service of
Northern Ireland's Chief Constable George Hamilton said last month that
Provisional IRA members had a role in Mr McGuigan Sr's murder.
But he added there was no
evidence at that stage that the killing had been sanctioned at a senior level
of the organisation. However, Mr Hamilton has now directed the arrest of one of
the PIRA’s most senior terrorists.
Sinn Féin said the PIRA no
longer exists after it ordered an end to its armed campaign in 2005, however,
Sinn Fein/PIRA have murdered over 40 Catholics since their agreed MI6 ‘cease-fire’
in 1994.
Adjournment
A total of 16 people have
been arrested in connection with Mr McGuigan Sr's murder.
One person has been charged,
while the others were released unconditionally.
After Wednesday's arrests,
First Minister Peter Robinson tweeted: "These events were predicted in my
statement on Monday.
"No-one can be above
the law. That is why we sought adjournment of the assembly.
"We will do so again.
Hopefully the UUP will support us this time, rather than voting with Sinn Féin
for business as usual," he added.
UUP leader Mike Nesbitt said
the "political implications could not be more serious and profound".
He said his MPs would meet
Prime Minister David Cameron on Wednesday to discuss the arrests.
Sparked
"That is how serious it
is being treated in Downing Street," he added.
The UUP leader said he had
no prior knowledge that the arrests were going to be made, but said he had been
"given to believe that the situation could become blacker".
In 2001, Mr Robinson told
the House of Commons that Mr Gillen was a member of the IRA's ruling army
council.
Mr Copeland is a leading
republican from north Belfast.
In 1994, former UUP leader
David Trimble used parliamentary privilege in the House of Commons to describe
him as an IRA godfather.
A year earlier, he was
seriously injured when he was shot by a soldier, and has survived a number of
attempts on his life by loyalist paramilitaries.
The three men are being
questioned at Antrim police station.
Exceptional
The murder of Mr McGuigan Sr
sparked a crisis in Northern Ireland's power-sharing government after the
police assessment of IRA involvement.
The UUP said Sinn Féin's
denial that the IRA existed made it "impossible to do business with
them" and subsequently left the Northern Ireland Executive.
The Democratic Unionist
Party said there would be no more meetings of the executive unless in
"exceptional circumstances".
A fresh round of talks
between the main political parties got under way on Tuesday.
Keywords: Sinn Fein Arrests, Kevin McGuigan murder, Provisional IRA, PSNI
NOTE: Further Evidence that Martin McGuinness is MI6 Agent
NOTE: Further Evidence that Martin McGuinness is MI6 Agent
NIO ‘prevented’ questioning of McGuinness over bomb
Police were prevented from questioning deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness about the 1987 Poppy Day bombing, a Westminster committee has heard.
The claim was brought to an inquiry focusing on the matter of compensation for victims of Libyan-sponsored IRA attacks, which began on Wednesday.
Its the first public evidence session into the role of the UK Government in seeking the compensation and is led by the cross-party Northern Ireland Affairs Committee.
The former Muammar Gaddafi regime provided the plastic explosive Semtex and other weapons to the IRA during the Troubles.
Kenny Donaldson, spokesman for the Innocent Victims United (IVU) group, said Libya used the IRA Enniskillen bomb as a way of waging war against the UK with the republican organisation.
The Committee heard the Northern Ireland Office advised a senior former Historical Enquiries Team investigator it "would not be a good idea" to question McGuinness on the atrocity.