Gerry Adams was 'de facto leader' of IRA, court told

"A great deal of intelligence which I read communicated, both explicitly and implicitly, that Adams was a senior member of the IRA Army Council and the de facto leader of the IRA."

"Had the defendant not been the senior figure in the IRA that he was, there would have been absolutely no point in the British, Irish and United States governments dealing with him the way they did on the road to the Good Friday Agreement in 1998."

"If Mr Adams did not hold a high rank in the IRA, then he pulled off a remarkable coup in convincing the British, Irish and US governments, as well as many IRA members, that he was."

Three bombing victims from England—Jonathan Ganesh (1996 London Docklands), John Clark (1973 Old Bailey), and Barry Laycock (1996 Arndale)—brought a civil case against former Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams, alleging he was a leading Provisional IRA member and Army Council member during those periods. They seek £1 in damages. Adams denies ever being in the IRA. An anonymous witness testified that intelligence indicated Adams was a senior IRA Army Council member and de facto leader. The witness argued that if Adams lacked such rank, he would have achieved a remarkable feat convincing British, Irish, and US governments of his importance. The witness emphasized that governments would not have engaged with Adams on the Good Friday Agreement path without his senior IRA position.

Read at Irish Independent