Original Sunday Times headline
In an interview with The Sunday Times, which took place after the murder of Lyra McKee in Derry on April 18, representatives from the group's army council acknowledged there was no public support for their campaign of violence but said they would continue to mount attacks in Northern Ireland for propaganda reasons.
Comment: So, this newly constituted terrorist group kills someone, then has a free pass to be interviewed by the British security services' favourite newspaper? Hmmm...
"Our armed actions serve one purpose. They are symbolic. They are propaganda. They let the world know there is an ongoing conflict in Northern Ireland," said one of the dissident leaders.
"Condemning the IRA is nothing new. We are not interested in being popular. Republicanism has always been a small core of people."
The dissident added: "Brexit has forced the IRA to refocus and has underlined how Ireland remains partitioned. It would be remiss of us not to capitalise on the opportunity."
In the interview, the paramilitary group provided further information on the murder of McKee, the 29-year-old journalist shot dead while observing a riot in the Creggan area of Derry, saying it had not planned to attack the police on the night she died.
The dissidents said McKee's shooting was an accident that occurred in the midst of a riot and described her death as "shocking" and "something that did nothing to further any cause".
"There is nothing we can say that will offer any comfort to her family and friends," said one of the dissidents. "The shots were fired in response to the arrival of Crown Forces. It wasn't a planned attack. It was a spontaneous reaction to the arrival of heavily armed police. Her shooting was unintentional. There is nothing we can say that will not sound like a hollow apology."
The paramilitary group said it justified the use of violence on the grounds that the 1998 Good Friday agreement had not achieved what the IRA or republicans wanted. It described the Stormont assembly as a failed institution which politicians had not attended for years while still getting paid.
"We still have all the issues that existed before the Good Friday agreement. There is talk of a border poll but it's at the discretion of a British secretary of state. Britain still has a veto over Irish sovereignty," said one of the dissidents.
Comment: Right, so is a border poll more or less likely to a.) happen, and b.) produce a majority reunification result, if civilians are being terrorized??
OBVIOUSLY NOT.
The Sunday Times also reported that their terrorist sources told them:
The army council of the New IRA has no doubt whatsoever about the public odium that its campaign of violence engenders. The members say they know the public will not protest if they are "all rounded up" by the security forces and imprisoned, but claim they will continue to carry out "attacks" even though they realise such actions will not bring about their aspiration of a united Ireland.That's pretty much a confession that this 'IRA' is a British intelligence front.
The interview followed months of secret contact and meetings with republican dissidents and their supporters both north and south of the border.
The New IRA, an amalgamation of republican hardliners who came together in 2012, is regarded as a significant threat to the security forces in Northern Ireland. Its members have been responsible for the murder of a police officer and prison guards.
The security services fear the group may be attracting new supporters as a result of the political vacuum created by the collapse of Stormont and the possible return of border checkpoints as a consequence of a no-deal Brexit. Concerns have already been raised in the EU that a no-deal Brexit could lead to an eruption of cross-border criminality and violence.
The dissidents declined to discuss their current strength, or whether they planned to increase the frequency of their attacks, but said their numbers had been bolstered by young people.
The group said it had established an army council and executive to direct policy and had expelled members it suspected of involvement in crime. The group said it had instructed its members not to engage in operations south of the border, a reference to recent reports suggesting it planned to target gardai.
"The organisation is driven by young people. Young people are being radicalised because they have no one to turn to. There are no left-wing political parties any more. Sinn Fein don't represent republicans. They are a centrist party now," said one of the paramilitaries.
During the interview, the dissidents asserted that they had no wish to engage in dialogue with the Irish or British governments which might bring about a cessation of their violent campaign. One of its leaders claimed approaches had been made by someone who they believed was from MI5 in the past six months concerning republican prisoners, but they saw no point in engaging.
"The British have tried to talk to us. There is no point in talks. We would be selling the project short," said the dissident.
The British Home Office said last week it was not policy to discuss issues of national security.
Comment: The return of Irish 'nationalist' terrorism in Northern Ireland (and in Britain) in recent years has only one real winner: the British security state. (Well, two winners: the pro-Anglo-American ultra-liberal Dublin government gets to rag on again about the evils of nationalism).
A fundamental reason why Sinn Fein/the Provisional IRA gave up terrorism in the 1990s was because their organization was by then thoroughly riddled with British (and even some American) spies. For decades, their man in charge of deciding who was or was not a British spy (and executing them)... was a British spy.
With the game rigged at that level, Sinn Fein/IRA settled for playing politics and the long game. It took a little longer than they anticipated, but indeed an opportunity for Irish reunification has opened up: Brexit. But they have to play it right. And, as any actual Irish nationalist will have obviously by now figured out, playing it violently is the surest way for reunification to NOT happen.
What better way to thwart the leverage the EU currently has over London, whereby it risks 'losing' Northern Ireland to Dublin/the EU in the event of a hard Brexit, than by reigniting a spiral of terror which justifies the re-imposition of a hard border?
"Sorry, we would have allowed you to govern yourselves, whole and free, but you're clearly not civilized enough for that yet..."