Irish National Liberation Army facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Irish National Liberation Army
Arm Saoirse Náisiúnta na hÉireann Participant in The Troubles
An INLA logo consisting of the Starry Plough and the Flag of Ireland with a red star and a fist holding an AK-47-derivative rifle.
Active	December 1974 – 2009 (on ceasefire since 1998, formally ended armed campaign in 2009)
Ideology	Communism Marxism-Leninism Left-wing nationalism Irish republicanism Anti-imperialism Revolutionary socialism
Political position	Far-left
Leaders	Seamus Costello Ronnie Bunting Dominic McGlinchey Hugh Torney Gino Gallagher
Area of operations	Ireland Great Britain Continental Europe
Allies	Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) Action directe
Opponents	United Kingdom  British Army Royal Ulster Constabulary Republic of Ireland Garda Siochána Ulster loyalist paramilitaries

The Irish National Liberation Army (INLA, Irish: Arm Saoirse Náisiúnta na hÉireann) is an Irish republican socialist paramilitary group formed on 8 December 1974, during the 30-year period of conflict known as "the Troubles". The group seeks to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and create a socialist republic encompassing all of Ireland. With membership estimated at 80–100 at their peak, it is the paramilitary wing of the Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP).

The INLA was founded by former members of the Official Irish Republican Army who opposed that group's ceasefire. It was initially known as the People's Liberation Army. The INLA waged a paramilitary campaign against the British Army and Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) in Northern Ireland. It was also active to a lesser extent in the Republic of Ireland, Great Britain and mainland Europe. It was smaller and less active than the main republican paramilitary group, the Provisional IRA. It was also weakened by feuds and internal tensions. Members of the group used the cover names People's Liberation Army, People's Republican Army, and Catholic Reaction Force for attacks its volunteers carried out but the INLA did not want to claim responsibility for. The INLA became a proscribed group in the United Kingdom on 3 July 1979 under the 1974 Prevention of Terrorism Act.

After a 24-year armed campaign, the INLA declared a ceasefire on 22 August 1998. In August 1999, it stated that "There is no political or moral argument to justify a resumption of the campaign". In October 2009, the INLA formally vowed to pursue its aims through peaceful political means and began decommissioning its weapons.

The IRSP supports a "No First Strike" policy, that is allowing people to see the perceived failure of the peace process for themselves without military actions.

The INLA is a proscribed organisation in the United Kingdom under the Terrorism Act 2000 and an illegal organisation in the Republic of Ireland.

Chiefs of staff

Images for kids

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  The Starry Plough is often used to represent the IRSP and INLA

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  Divis Flats, Belfast

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  Maze prison near Belfast, site of the prisoners' protests and hunger strike

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  A commemoration on the 25th anniversary of the hunger strike

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  The radar station at Mount Gabriel was bombed by the INLA in September 1982, who claimed it was providing assistance to NATO

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  INLA volunteers carrying a flag of Ireland, a red flag and a Starry Plough flag in the Bogside area of Derry (2005)

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  An INLA memorial in Milltown Cemetery, Belfast