In the autumn of 1982 three policemen in Northern Ireland were killed by a landmine planted by the IRA. At once, the Royal Ulster Constabulary plotted their revenge. Acting on information provided by one of their informers in the IRA - who has been paid many, many thousands of pounds - they identified five Republicans who were said to have been responsible for the landmine, and a hay shed which was, according to the informer, used by the IRA to hoard weapons. There is a lot of evidence that the informer's information was incorrect, and that he himself 'set up' the shed as a possible arms store by planting in it two old rifles, without ammunition.

LRB 3 March 1988 | PDF Download