Gerry Adams signed off on operations of the Provisional IRA in the mid- to late 1990s, such as the 1996 Manchester truck bombs, a former British intelligence officer has told London’s high court. Adams (77) strongly denies any involvement and has always rejected claims he was in the IRA. He said intelligence from “high-grade, well-placed sources” said Adams joined the army council around the late 1970s and remained on it into the late 2000s. Cross-examined by Adams’s barrister, James Robottom, Liles denied he was “speculating” about Adams’s membership of the army council by 1996. Liles said this appointment did not say “intelligence officer”, but he had access to “high-grade intelligence” during this period.

Source: The Irish Times March 17, 2026 15:14 UTC