Brian Keenan (b. 1942 in Swatragh, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland^[1][2]) is a former member of the Army Council of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) who received an 18 year prison sentence in 1980 for conspiring to cause explosions, and played a key role in the Northern Ireland peace process.^[3][4] Brian Keenan may be: Brian Keenan (musician) (1943-1985), United States Brian Keenan (hostage) (b. ... Swatragh is a small village in County Derry in Northern Ireland. ... Statistics Province: Ulster County Town: Derry Area: 2,074 km² Population (est. ... Northern Ireland (Irish: ) is a part of the United Kingdom lying in the northeast of the island of Ireland, covering 5,459 square miles (14,139 km², about a sixth of the islands total area). ... The IRA Army Council is the decision-making body of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, more commonly known as the IRA, a paramilitary group dedicated to bringing about the end of the Union between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom. ... The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Irish: Óglaigh na hÉireann) (IRA; also referred to as the PIRA, the Provos, or by some of its supporters as the Army or the RA.[2]) is an Irish Republican, left wing[3] paramilitary organisation that, until the Belfast Agreement, sought to end Northern... When discussing the history of Northern Ireland, the peace process is generally considered to cover the events leading up to the 1994 IRA ceasefire, the end of most of the violence of The Troubles, the Belfast (or Good Friday) Agreement, and subsequent political developments. ...

Early life

The son of a member of the Royal Air Force, Keenan was brought up in Swatragh, County Londonderry, before his family moved to Belfast.^[2] As a teenager, Keenan moved to England to find work, for a time working as a television repairman in partnership with his brother in Corby, Northamptonshire. During this time he came to the attention of the police when he damaged a cigarette machine, which resulted with the police having his fingerprints on file.^[1] Keenan returned to Northern Ireland when the Troubles began, and started working at the Grundig factory in the Finaghy area of Belfast where he acquired a reputation as a radical due to his involvement in trade union activities.^[1] “RAF” redirects here. ... This article is about the city in Northern Ireland. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Corby (disambiguation). ... Northamptonshire (abbreviated Northants or Nhants) is a landlocked county in central England with a population of 629,676 (2001 census). ... Fingerprints can refer to: Human fingerprints Fingerprints, a Leonard Cohen song. ... Northern Ireland (Irish: ) is a part of the United Kingdom lying in the northeast of the island of Ireland, covering 5,459 square miles (14,139 km², about a sixth of the islands total area). ... For other uses, see Troubles (disambiguation) and Trouble. ... Grundig AG was a West German manufacturer of consumer electronics for home entertainment. ... Finaghy is an area of south Belfast in Northern Ireland. ... A trade union or labor union is an organization of workers. ...

IRA activity

Despite his family having no history of republican tradition, Keenan joined the IRA in 1970 or 1971, and by August 1971 was the quartermaster of the Belfast Brigade.^[1] Keenan was an active IRA member masterminding bombings in Belfast and travelling abroad to make political contacts and arrange arms smugling, acquiring contacts in East Germany, Libya, Lebanon and Syria.^[1][5] In 1972 Keenan travelled to Tripoli to meet with Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi in order to acquire arms and finance from his regime,^[1] and in early 1973 Keenan took over responsibility for control of the IRA's bombing campaign in England and also became IRA Quartermaster General.^[6][7] Quartermaster is a term usually referring to a military unit which specializes in supplying and provisioning troops, or to an individual who does the same. ... The Provisional Irish Republican Army Belfast Brigade was the largest of the organisations command areas, based in the city of Belfast. ... The Provisional Irish Republican Army imported large quantities of weapons and ammunition into Ireland for use in Northern Ireland since the early 1970s. ... Anthem Auferstanden aus Ruinen Capital East Berlin Language(s) German Government Socialist republic Head of State  - 1949 – 1960 Wilhelm Pieck  - 1960 – 1973 Walter Ulbricht  - 1973 – 1976 Willi Stoph  - 1976 – 1989 Erich Honecker  - 1989 Egon Krenz  - 1989 - 1990 Manfred Gerlach Head of Government  - 1949 – 1964 Otto Grotewohl  - 1964 – 1973 Willi Stoph... Tripoli (Arabic: طرابلس Tarābulus) is the capital city of Libya. ... Muammar Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi1 (Arabic:   ) (born c. ... The IRA Quartermaster General (QMG) runs a department which is responsible for obtaining, concealing and maintaining the store of weaponry of the Irish Republican Army. ...

In early 1974 Keenan planned to break Gerry Adams and Ivor Bell out of Long Kesh using a helicopter, in a method similar to Seamus Twomey's escape from Mountjoy Prison October 1973, but the plan was vetoed by Billy McKee.^[8] Keenan was arrested in the Republic of Ireland in mid-1974, and served a twelve-month prison sentence before being released in July 1975.^[9] While being held in Long Kesh, Gerry Adams helped devised a blueprint for the reorganisation of the IRA, which included the use of covert cells and the establishment of a Southern Command and Northern Command.^[10] As the architects of the blueprint—Adams, Bell and Brendan Hughes—were still imprisoned, Martin McGuinness and Keenan toured the country trying to convince the Army Council and middle leadership of the benefits of the restructuring plan, with one IRA member remarking "Keenan was a roving ambassador for Adams".^[10] The proposal was accepted after Keenan won support from the South Derry Brigade, East Tyrone Brigade and South Armagh Brigade, with one IRA member saying "Keenan was really the John the Baptist to Adams' Christ".^[11] Gerard Adams (Irish Gearóid Mac Ádhaimh[1]; born 6 October 1948) is an Irish Republican politician and abstentionist Westminster Member of Parliament for Belfast West. ... Ivor Bell was a Protestant member (volunteer) in the Belfast Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) who later became Chief of Staff on the Army Council. ... Her Majestys Prison (HMP) Maze (known colloqually as The Maze) is a disused prison sited at the former RAF station at Long Kesh (it is still called Long Kesh by many Irish Republicans) near Lisburn, nine miles outside Belfast, in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. ... Seamus Twomey (1919 – 12 September 1989) was an Irish republican and twice chief of staff of the Provisional Irish Republican Army. ... Mountjoy Prison is a closed medium security prison located in Dublin, Ireland. ... Billy McKee is an Irish Republican and was an original founding member and former leader of the Provisional Irish Republican Army[1]. // McKee was born in Belfast in the early 1920s. ... A covert cell structure is a method for organizing undercover or unconventional fighters against a large and well-established organization. ... Northern Command is a command division in the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and Provisional IRA, responsible for directing IRA operations in the northern part of Ireland. ... Brendan The Dark Hughes (b. ... James Martin Pacelli McGuinness MP MLA (Irish: Máirtín Mag Aonghusa,[1] born in Derry 23 May 1950) is the Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland. ... The South Armagh Brigade was a brigade within the Provisional Irish Republican Army which operated during the Troubles in south County Armagh, a predominantly Nationalist area along the border with the Republic of Ireland. ...

In December 1975 an IRA unit based in London were arrested following the six-day Balcombe Street Siege.^[12] The IRA unit had been active in England since late 1974 carrying out a series of bombings, and a few months after his release from prison Keenan visited the unit in Crouch Hill, London, to brief the unit with further instructions.^[9] In follow-up raids after the siege, police discovered crossword puzzles in his handwriting and his fingerprints were found on a list of bomb parts, and a warrant was issued for his arrest.^[4][13] The Balcombe Street Siege was an incident involving members of the Provisional IRA (Irish Republican Army) and the London Metropolitan Police lasting from December 6 to December 12, 1975. ... Crouch Hill is a small area of north London, England, nestled between Crouch End and Stroud Green in the borough of Haringey. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ...

Police informer Sean O'Callaghan states that Keenan recommended IRA Chief of Staff Seamus Twomey authorise an attack on Protestants in retaliation to an increase in attacks on Catholics by loyalists, such as the killing of three Catholics in a gun and bomb attack by the Ulster Volunteer Force on a bar in Silverbridge, County Armagh on 19 December 1975.^[14][15] According to O'Callaghan "Keenan believed that the only way, in his words, to put the nonsense out of the Prods [Protestants] was to just hit back much harder and more savagely than them", and Twomey sanctioned the Kingsmill massacre, an attack where ten Protestant men were killed in a machine gun attack on 5 January 1976.^[14] OCallaghan pictured on the cover of his first book, The Informer Sean OCallaghan is a former member of the Provisional Irish Republican Army who became an informer for the Garda Síochána (The Republic of Ireland State Police Force) and who was later debriefed by the UK... The following is the list of those who have served as Chief of Staff of the Irish Republican Army in the various incarnations of organisations bearing that name. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... The Ulster Volunteer Force (more commonly referred to as the UVF) is a loyalist group in Northern Ireland. ... Silverbridge is a small village in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, near Crossmaglen. ... is the 353rd day of the year (354th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... In the Kingsmill massacre on January 5, 1976, ten Protestant men were killed in South Armagh, Northern Ireland, by members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, using the cover name South Armagh Republican Action Force. The victims were textile workers returning home to Bessbrook in a Ford Transit mini-bus... is the 5th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1976 Pick up sticks(MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Arrest and imprisonment

Keenan was arrested on the basis of the 1975 warrant near Banbridge on 20 March 1979 when the Royal Ulster Constabulary stopped two cars travelling north on the main road from Dublin to Belfast, and was extradited to England to face charges relating to the Balcombe Street Gang's campaign in England.^[13][16] The capture of Keenan was a blow to the IRA, in particular as he was carrying an address book listing his contacts including Palestinian activists in the United Kingdom.^[13][16] The IRA responded by despatching Bobby Storey and three other members to break Keenan out of prison using a helicopter, but all four were arrested and remanded to Brixton Prison.^[16] Keenan stood trial at the Old Bailey in London in June 1980 defended by Michael Mansfield, and was accused of organising the IRA's bombing campaign in England and being implicated in the deaths of eight people including Ross McWhirter and Gordon Hamilton-Fairley. Keenan was sentenced to eighteen years imprisonment after being found guilty on 25 June 1980.^[4] WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 54. ... is the 79th day of the year (80th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ... The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was name of the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. ... Dublin city centre at night WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: , Statistics Province: Leinster County: Dáil Éireann: Dublin Central, Dublin North Central, Dublin North East, Dublin North West, Dublin South Central, Dublin South East European Parliament: Dublin Dialling Code: +353 1 Postal District(s): D1-24, D6W Area: 114. ... Bobby Storey is a PIRA volunteer from Belfast, Northern Ireland. ... Brixton Prison is the oldest correctional facility operating in the United Kingdom and the first English prison to become an exclusive womens correctional facility. ... The Old Bailey. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... Michael Mansfield QC is a well-known British lawyer. ... Alan Ross McWhirter (12 August 1925 - 27 November 1975), known as Ross McWhirter, was, with his twin brother, Norris McWhirter, co-founder of the Guinness Book of Records. ... Gordon Hamilton-Fairley (1930-1975), was one of the worlds leading cancer specialists. ... is the 176th day of the year (177th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar). ...

Keenan continued to support Gerry Adams while in prison. In August 1982 Adams was granted permission by the IRA's Army Council to stand in a forthcoming election to the Northern Ireland Assembly, having been refused permission at a meeting the previous month.^[17] In a letter sent from Leicester Prison Keenan wrote that he "emphatically" supported the move and endorsed the Army Council's decision, saying: It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Northern Ireland assembly elections, 1982. ... HMP Leicester is a prison in Leicester, England. ...

It is not enough for Republicans to say, with reference to the Army [IRA], actions speak louder than words. We must never forsake action but the final war to win will be the savage war of peace. To those of us who have struggled for years in a purely military capacity, it must be obvious that if we do not provide honest, recognisable political leadership on the ground, we will lose that war for peace.^[17]

Peace process

Keenan was released from prison in June 1993 and by 1996 was one of seven members of the IRA's Army Council. Following the events after the IRA's ceasefire of August 1994 he had been openly critical of Gerry Adams and the "tactical use of armed struggle", or TUAS, strategy employed by the Republican movement.^[18][19] After the Northern Ireland peace process had become deadlocked over the issue of the IRA decommissiong its arms, Keenan and the other members of the Army Council authorised the Docklands bombing which killed two people and marked the end of the IRA's eighteen month ceasefire in February 1996.^[14] Tuas is largely an industrial zone located in the western part of Singapore. ... When discussing the history of Northern Ireland, the peace process is generally considered to cover the events leading up to the 1994 IRA ceasefire, the end of most of the violence of The Troubles, the Belfast (or Good Friday) Agreement, and subsequent political developments. ...

Keenan outlined the IRA's position in May 1996 at a ceremony in memory of hunger striker Seán McCaughey at Milltown Cemetery, where he stated "The IRA will not be defeated...Republicans will have our victory...Do not be confused about decommissioning. The only thing the Republican movement will accept is the decommissioning of the British state in this country".^[20] In the same speech he accused the British of "double-dealing" and denounced the Irish government as "spineless".^[21] {{Infobox 1981 Hungerstriker |image=Seán McCaughey. ... Milltown Cemetery is a graveyard in Belfast, Ireland. ...

In November 1998 Keenan addressed a republican rally in Cullyhanna, County Armagh to mark the 25th anniversary of the death of IRA member Michael McVerry.^[22] He stated: Cullyhanna is a small village in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, close to the birthplace of Cardinal Tomas Ó Fíaich, who until his death was head of the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland. ... Statistics Province: Ulster County Town: Armagh Area: 1,254 km² Population (est. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

I can categorically state the only time the IRA will decommission, we will decommission in agreement with a government of national democracy, a government that derives from the first Dáil. That's when we will decommission—never, ever before...Everybody's saying: 'The prisoners are being released, what's your problem?' Well there's no prisoner was ever in jail to be let out to sell out the struggle and I'm sure none of them would want to be let out if this struggle wasn't going the whole way.^[22]

Keenan continued by saying that if republican demands were not met then British Prime Minister Tony Blair would be responsible for the consequences,^[22] and went on to say: The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is, in practice, the political leader of the United Kingdom. ... For other people of the same name, see Tony Blair (disambiguation) Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born May 6, 1953)[1] is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service, Leader of the Labour Party, and Member of Parliament for the constituency...

So in the future maybe the jails are going to be full again...If our enemies don't want peace, there can only be one conclusion: they must want war. We don't want to go back to that. But let there be no mistake: if we don't get equality and if the reasons for conflict are still there...then the waiting time will soon draw to a close and republicans will once again have to do anything that is necessary to get a Republic, because that's the goal.^[22]

On 25 February 2001 Keenan addressed a republican rally in Creggan, County Armagh, saying that republicans should not fear "this phase" of "the revolution" collapsing should the Good Friday Agreement fail.^[3][23] Keenan confirmed his continued committment to the Armalite and ballot box strategy saying that both political negotiations and violence were "legitimate forms of revolution" and that both "have to be prosecuted to the utmost". Keenan went on to say "The revolution can never be over until we have British imperialism where it belongs—in the dustbin of history", a message aimed at preventing rank-and-file IRA activists defecting to the dissident Real IRA.^[23] is the 56th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ... Creggan is a small village in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, just outside Crossmaglen. ... The Belfast Agreement (also known as the Good Friday Agreement and, more rarely, as the Stormont Agreement) was signed in Belfast on April 10, 1998 by the British and Irish Governments and endorsed by most Northern Ireland political parties. ... The armalite and the ballot box strategy was pursued by the Irish Republican movement in the 1980s and early 1990s, a strategy where elections in Northern Ireland and the Republic were contested by Sinn Féin, while the IRA continued to pursue a paramilitary struggle against the British army, the... Rank-and-file refers to the ordinary members of an organisation, excluding the officers or managers. ... Categories: Wikipedia cleanup | Organization stubs | Terrorist organizations in Northern Ireland | Rebellion ...

Keenan played a key role in the peace process acting as the IRA's go-between with the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning with Gerry Adams remarking "There wouldn't be a peace process if it wasn't for Brian Keenan".^[3][4] Keenan resigned from his position on the Army Council in 2005 due to ill-health, and was replaced by Bernard Fox, who took part in the 1981 Irish hunger strike.^[24] On 6 May 2007 Keenan was guest speaker at a rally in Cappagh, County Tyrone to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the deaths of the "Loughgall Marytrs", eight members of the IRA's East Tyrone Brigade killed by the SAS in 1987.^[25] The Independent International Commission on Decommissioning (IICD) was established to oversee the decommissioning of paramilitary weapons in Ireland, as part of the peace process. ... Bernard Fox (born c. ... A mural in Derrys Bogside, commemorating Irish hunger strikers. ... is the 126th day of the year (127th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Statistics Province: Ulster County Town: Omagh Area: 3,155 km² Population (est. ... The Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) is the principal special forces unit of the British Army. ...

References