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Background: The Continuity Army Council
October 8, 1996
Web posted at: 12:15 p.m. EDT (1615 GMT)BELFAST, N. Ireland (CNN) -- The Continuity Army Council (CAC), which claimed responsibility Tuesday for a double bombing at a British Army base, regards itself as the true Irish Republican Army.
It issued a blunt statement in January warning that "action would be taken" to achieve Irish independence. The splinter group is believed to include dissident IRA members.
Ruairi O'Bradaigh, the hard-line leader who walked out on Sinn Fein in 1986, was implacably opposed to the IRA cease-fire. After the cease-fire was declared in August 1994, O'Bradaigh, a former president of Sinn Fein and chief of staff of the Provisional IRA, accused Gerry Adams of betrayal and said a new terrorist group would be formed.
The Continuity Army Council claims that it is the "lawful executive and army council of the Irish Republican Army."
The CAC came to light last year when police intercepted a huge car bomb being driven across the border towards a British barracks at Crossmaglen.
In July this year the group claimed responsibility for a massive car bomb outside a hotel in Kellyhevlin, Northern Ireland, that injured dozens.
Related stories:
- Bombs rock British army HQ near Belfast - October 7, 1996
- Northern Ireland peace talks resume - September 6, 1996
Related sites:
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- Northern Ireland: Frameworks for the Future
- Northern Ireland Information Centre
- Northern Ireland Government Home Page
- Sinn Fein - Home Page
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