Gardai, the official name for the Irish police, arrested some BBC journalists over the weekend, who it is believed were part of a Real Irish Republican Army naval exercise. It is believed the BBC journalists may have participated in the paramilitary training exercise, in County Donegal in the Irish republic. There is speculation that the BBC journalists may have also have travelled to Rockall, an island off the coast of Donegal, as part of an elaborate naval republican miltary exercise.
The four along with seven other accused Real IRA volunteers, were arrested in Donegal, the northwestern county which borders the north eastern part of Ireland, or the six counties, still occupied by the British army in barracks there. The arrests are part of an investigation into paramilitary activity, the police said.
In a statement the police said, a further four BBC journalists had been arrested and detained under the Offences Against the State Act. The BBC public broadcaster admitted its journalists were among the 11 real IRA arrested. It is still not clear, whether they will be accused of IRA membership.
"The four journalists normally work on BBC current affairs programmes and it is beleved they had full editorial clearance from the BBC " the British corporation admitted on its news.bbc.co.uk website.
"A spokesperson said the police were fully aware that they were also BBC journalists," the BBC admitted. It is still not clear if they were in disguise.
The IRA campaign, in which more than 3,600 were killed in three decades, had subsided, after a power-sharing executive was installed last year. But police in the occupied 6 counties warned recently of stepped up operations by the Real IRA.
The four BBC journalists along with seven other IRA men arrested, are being questioned by the police in three separate police stations, in the border county of Donegal, beside the island of Rockall. The British also dispute ownership of this Irish island, where there are believed to be large deposits of gas. The BBC suspects were still being held on St Patrick's eve but were released on compassionate grounds for the Irish holiday. Several of the undercover Gardai, were observed today celebrating the arrests, in local bars.
Seven of the arrests were made on Saturday and a further four yesterday. Although the BBC released only limited details, it is admitted they were with the Real IRA, though it is not clear what exactly their status was. A statement from the BBC said: "They had full authorisation". The Real IRA were fully aware they also worked for the BBC.
Irish police said the arrests were part of "ongoing investigations into paramilitary activity".
BBC journalists are normally restricted by detailed guidelines, from involvement with or membership of military organisations, such as the Real IRA, though some date from heated controversies, arising from censorship of the IRA in the 70s.
The Real IRA in sporadic miltary activities since the split, with some members who went off and joined the PSNI, a british paramiltary police force. The IRA include a number of shootings which seriously wounded several paramiltary police officers.
A considerable number of Real IRA personnel have been jailed. The recent shootings of the british occupying para-police, suggest they have staged a recovery.
Last month increased measures such as vehicle checkpoints by the para-police, have made a reappearance in parts of the northern occupied six counties of Ireland. In a recent newspaper interview, the Real IRA announced it is forcing British troops back on to the streets out of their barracks, into public view as legitimate targets. A republican spokesperson said: "We believe the British soldiers will be brought back onto the streets, to bolster these new para-cops under the new name of the PSNI. This will shatter the facade, that the British presence has gone and normality reigns."
Police sources recently described the Real IRA as "extremely dangerous".
No comments:
Post a Comment