Operation Banner - wikipedia Operation Banner Operation Banner Part of the Troubles and the Dissident Irish Republican campaign Two British Army soldiers at a checkpoint near Newry, Northern Ireland, 1988 Date 14 August 1969 -- 31 July 2007 ( 37 years, 11 months, 2 weeks and 3 days ) Location Northern Ireland Result Stalemate Paramilitary ceasefires Demilitarisation Good Friday Agreement Belligerents British Armed Forces Royal Ulster Constabulary Irish republican paramilitaries Ulster loyalist paramilitaries Casualties and losses 722 deaths from paramilitary attacks 719 deaths from other causes 6,100 injured 127 killed 13 killed The Troubles Ireland 1960s Battle of the Bogside / August 1969 riots 1970s Battle of St Matthew 's Falls Curfew 1970 Crossmaglen bombing Scottish soldiers ' killings 1971 Provisional / Official IRA feud Operation Demetrius Ballymurphy massacre Newry killings Red Lion pub McGurk 's bombing Balmoral showroom bombing Bloody Sunday Abercorn bombing Donegall St bombing Battle at Springmartin Battle of Lenadoon Springhill massacre Bloody Friday Operation Motorman Claudy bombing Benny 's bombing Belturbet bombing Dublin bombings New Lodge Six shooting `` Captain Black '' killings Coleraine bombings Rose & Crown Bar bombing Dublin - Monaghan bombings `` Romper Room '' murder Conway 's Bar Mountainview Tavern Strand Bar bombing Miami Showband killings Bayardo Bar Tullyvallen massacre Belfast & Coleraine attacks Drummuckavall ambush Dublin Airport bombing Dundalk & Silverbridge attacks Gilford bombing Reavey - O'Dowd killings Kingsmill massacre Castleblayney bombing Hillcrest Bar bombing Step Inn Pub Flagstaff incident Chlorane Bar Ramble Inn Garryhinch ambush Jonesboro Gazelle downing La Mon bombing Crossmaglen Ambush Bessbrook bombing Warrenpoint ambush 1980s Dunmurry train bombing Lough Foyle Bessbrook landmine attack Glasdrumman ambush Divis Flats bomb Ballykelly bombing Ballygawley landmine attack Darkley killings Kesh ambush Gransha shootings Newry mortar attack Killeen Landmine attack Ballygawley barracks The Birches barracks Clontibret invasion Rosnaree Hotel shooting Loughgall ambush Enniskillen bombing Milltown Cemetery Corporals killings Avenue Bar shooting Lisburn van bombing Ballygawley bus bombing Drumnakilly ambush Orange Cross Social Club shooting Jonesborough ambush Derryard checkpoint 1990s Downpatrick bombing Derrygorry Gazelle shootdown Operation Conservation Fort Victoria 1990 proxy bombs Mullacreevie ambush Cappagh killings Drumbeg killings Glenanne barracks Coagh ambush Craigavon killings Donegall Arms shooting Teebane bombing Sean Graham bookmakers Clonoe ambush Cloghoge checkpoint Coalisland riots South Armagh sniper campaign Science Lab bombing James Murray 's bookmakers IRA purge of IPLO Castlerock killings Cullaville occupation Battle of Newry Road Shankill bombing Greysteel massacre Crossmaglen Lynx shootdown 1994 Shankill Road killings Loughinisland massacre Connolly station bomb Drumcree crisis Killyhevlin Hotel bombing 1996 Derry riots Thiepval barracks 1997 Coalisland attack July 1997 riots Newtownhamilton bombing Quinn brothers ' killings Banbridge bombing Omagh bombing Great Britain 1970s Aldershot bombing Old Bailey bombing King 's Cross & Euston stations Westminster bombing M62 coach bombing Parliament bombing Tower of London bombing Guildford bombings Brook 's bombing Harrow bombing Woolwich pub bombing Birmingham bombings Pillar box bombings Bristol bombing Oxford St bombing Carlton Tower & Portman Hotel shootings Caterham bombing Hilton bombing Piccadilly bombing Trattoria bombing Scott 's bombing Walton 's bombing Biddy Mulligan 's bombing Balcombe St siege Cannon Street bombing West Ham attack Olympia bombing Airey Neavey killing Glasgow bombings 1980s Chelsea bombing Hyde & Regent 's Park bombings Harrods bombing Woolwich barracks Brighton bombing. Inglis barracks Clive barracks Deal barracks 1990s Eltham bombing Wembley bombing Lichfield shooting HAC bombing Carlton Club bombing Stock Exchange bombing Downing St attack Victoria & Paddington station bombings London Bridge bombing Baltic Exchange bombing 1992 Leeds Bombing Staples Corner bombing Sussex Arms pub bombing 1992 Manchester bombing Wood Green bomb Warrington bombings 1993 Harrods bombing Camden Town bombing Bishopsgate bombing Heathrow attacks Docklands bombing Aldwych bus bombing 1996 Hammersmith Bridge bombing 1996 Manchester bombing Mainland Europe Brussels bombing ( Belgium ) Rheindahlen bombing ( Germany ) Operation Flavius ( Gibraltar ) 1988 Netherlands attacks Glamorgan Barracks bombing ( Germany ) Roermond killings ( Netherlands ) Osnabrück barracks ( Germany ) Operation Banner was the operational name for the British Armed Forces ' operation in Northern Ireland from August 1969 to July 2007, as part of the Troubles. It was the longest continuous deployment in the British military 's history. The British Army was initially deployed, at the request of the unionist government of Northern Ireland, in response to the August 1969 riots. Its role was to support the Royal Ulster Constabulary ( RUC ) and to assert the authority of the British government in Northern Ireland. At the peak of the operation in the 1970s, about 21,000 British troops were deployed, most of them from Britain. As part of the operation, a new locally - recruited regiment was also formed : the Ulster Defence Regiment ( UDR ). After the 1998 Belfast Agreement, the operation was gradually scaled down and the vast majority of British troops were withdrawn. According to the Ministry of Defence, 1,441 serving British military personnel died in Operation Banner ; 722 of whom were killed in paramilitary attacks, and 719 of whom died as a result of other causes. The British military killed 306 people during the operation, about 51 % of whom were civilians and 41 % of whom were members of republican paramilitaries. Contents 1 Description of the operation 2 Role of the armed forces 3 Number of troops deployed 4 Controversies 4.1 Relationship with the Catholic community 4.2 Collusion with loyalist paramilitaries 5 Casualties 6 Analysis of the operation 7 References 8 External links Description of the Operation The British Army was initially deployed, at the request of the unionist government of Northern Ireland, in response to the August 1969 riots. Its role was to support the Royal Ulster Constabulary ( RUC ) and to assert the authority of the British government in Northern Ireland. The main opposition to the British military 's deployment came from the Provisional Irish Republican Army ( IRA ). It waged a guerrilla campaign against the British military from 1970 to 1997. Catholics welcomed the soldiers when they first arrived in August 1969, but Catholic hostility to the British military 's deployment increased after incidents such as the Falls Curfew ( 1970 ), Operation Demetrius ( 1971 ), the Ballymurphy Massacre ( 1971 ) and Bloody Sunday ( 1972 ). An internal British Army document released in 2007 stated that, whilst it had failed to defeat the IRA, it had made it impossible for the IRA to win through violence, and reduced substantially the death toll in the last years of conflict. Crossmaglen RUC / Army base, showing a watchtower built during the operation that was later demolished as part of the demilitarisation process. The barracks were handed over to the PSNI in 2007. The operation was gradually scaled down from 1998, after the Good Friday Agreement, when patrols were suspended and several military barracks closed or dismantled, even before the beginning of IRA 's decommissioning. The process of demilitarisation started in 1994, after the first IRA ceasefire. From the second IRA ceasefire in 1997 until the first act of decommission of weapons in 2001, almost 50 % of the army bases had been vacated or demolished along with surveillance sites and holding centers, while more than 100 cross-border roads were reopened. Eventually in August 2005, it was announced that in response to the Provisional IRA declaration that its campaign was over, and in accordance with the Good Friday Agreement provisions, Operation Banner would end by 1 August 2007. This involved troops based in Northern Ireland reduced to 5,000, and only for training purposes. Security was entirely transferred to the police. The Northern Ireland Resident battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment -- which grew out of the Ulster Defence Regiment -- were stood down on 1 September 2006. The operation officially ended at midnight on 31 July 2007, making it the longest continuous deployment in the British Army 's history, lasting over 38 years. While the withdrawal of troops was welcomed by the nationalist parties Social Democratic and Labour Party and Sinn Féin, the unionist Democratic Unionist Party and Ulster Unionist Party opposed the decision, which they regarded as ' premature '. The main reasons behind their resistance were the continuing activity of republican dissident groups, the loss of security - related jobs for the protestant community and the perception of the British Army presence as an affirmation of the political union with Great Britain. Adam Ingram, the Minister of State for the Armed Forces, has stated that assuming the maintenance of an enabling environment, British Army support to the PSNI after 31 July 2007 was reduced to a residual level, known as Operation Helvetic, providing specialised ordnance disposal and support to the PSNI in circumstances of extreme public disorder as described in Patten recommendations 59 and 66, should this be needed, thus ending the British Army 's emergency operation in Northern Ireland. Role of the armed forces The support to the police forces was primarily from the British Army, with the Royal Air Force providing helicopter support as required. A maritime component was supplied under the codename of Operation Grenada, by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines in direct support of the Army commitment. This was tasked with interdicting the supply of weapons and munitions to paramilitaries, acting as a visible deterrence by maintaining a conspicuous maritime presence on and around the coast of Northern Ireland and Lough Neagh. The role of the armed forces in their support role to the police was defined by the Army in the following terms : `` Routine support -- Includes such tasks as providing protection to the police in carrying out normal policing duties in areas of terrorist threat ; patrolling around military and police bases to deter terrorist attacks and supporting police - directed counter-terrorist operations '' `` Additional support -- Assistance where the police have insufficient assets of their own ; this includes the provision of observation posts along the border and increased support during times of civil disorder. The military can provide soldiers to protect and, if necessary, supplement police lines and cordons. The military can provide heavy plant to remove barricades and construct barriers, and additional armoured vehicles and helicopters to help in the movement of police and soldiers '' `` Specialist support -- Includes bomb disposal, search and tracker dogs, and divers from the Royal Engineers '' Number of troops deployed At the peak of the operation in the 1970s, the British Army was deploying around 21,000 soldiers. By 1980, the figure had dropped to 11,000, with a lower presence of 9,000 in 1985. The total climbed again to 10,500 after the intensification of the IRA use of barrack busters toward the end of the 1980s. In 1992, there were 17,750 members of all British military forces taking part in the operation. The British Army build - up comprised three brigades under the command of a lieutenant - general. There were six resident battalions deployed for a period of two and a half years and four roulement battalions serving six - months tours. In July 1997, during the course of fierce riots in nationalist areas triggered by the Drumcree conflict, the total number of security forces in Northern Ireland increased to more than 30,000 ( including the RUC ). A British Army Land Rover patrolling South Belfast ( 1981 ) A British Army Ammunition Technical Officer approaches a suspect device in Belfast Controversies The British military was responsible for about 10 % of all deaths in the conflict. According to one study, the British military killed 306 people during Operation Banner, 156 ( ~ 51 % ) of whom were unarmed civilians. Another study says the British military killed 301 people, 160 ( ~ 53 % ) of whom were unarmed civilians. Of the civilians killed, 61 were children. Only four soldiers were convicted of murder while on duty in Northern Ireland. All were released after serving two or three years of life sentences and allowed to rejoin the Army. Senior Army officers privately lobbied successive Attorneys General not to prosecute soldiers, and the Committee on the Administration of Justice says there is evidence soldiers were given some level of immunity from prosecution. Elements of the British Army also colluded with illegal loyalist paramilitaries responsible for numerous attacks on civilians ( see below ). Journalist Fintan O'Toole argues that `` both militarily and ideologically, the Army was a player, not a referee ''. Relationship with the Catholic community Many Catholics initially welcomed the British Army 's deployment, as Catholic neighbourhoods had been attacked by Protestant loyalists and the Royal Ulster Constabulary ( RUC ). However, relations soured between the British Army and Catholics. The British Army 's actions in support of the RUC and the unionist government `` gradually earned it a reputation of bias '' in favour of Protestants and unionists. In the British Army 's campaign against the IRA, Catholic areas were frequently subjected to house raids, checkpoints, patrols and curfews that Protestant areas avoided. There were frequent claims of soldiers physically and verbally abusing Catholics during these searches. In some neighbourhoods, clashes between Catholic residents and British troops became a regular occurrence. In April 1970, Ian Freeland, the British Army 's overall commander in Northern Ireland, announced that anyone throwing petrol bombs would be shot dead if they did not heed a warning from soldiers. A memorial to those killed by British soldiers during the Ballymurphy Massacre. The Falls Curfew in July 1970, was a major blow to relations between the British Army and Catholics. A weapons search in the mainly Catholic Falls area of Belfast developed into a riot and then gun battles with the IRA. The British Army then imposed a 36 - hour curfew and arrested all journalists inside the curfew zone. It is claimed that because the media were unable to watch them, the soldiers behaved `` with reckless abandon ''. A large amount of CS gas was fired into the area while hundreds of homes and businesses were forcibly searched for weapons. The searches caused much destruction, and there were scores of complaints of soldiers hitting, threatening, insulting and humiliating residents. The Army also admitted there had been looting by some soldiers. Four civilians were killed by the British Army during the operation, and another 60 suffered gunshot wounds. On 9 August 1971, internment ( imprisonment without trial ) was introduced in Northern Ireland. Soldiers launched dawn raids and interned almost 350 people suspected of IRA involvement. This sparked four days of violence in which 20 civilians were killed and thousands were forced to flee their homes. Of the 17 civilians killed by British soldiers, 11 of them were in the Ballymurphy Massacre. No loyalists were included in the sweep, and many of those arrested were Catholics with no provable paramilitary links. Many internees reported being beaten, verbally abused, threatened, denied sleep and starved. Some internees were taken to a secret interrogation centre for a program of `` deep interrogation ''. The five techniques, the interrogation techniques, were described by the European Court of Human Rights as `` inhuman and degrading '', and by the European Commission of Human Rights as `` torture ''. The operation led to mass protests and a sharp increase in violence over the following months. Internment lasted until December 1975, with 1,981 people interned. Banner and crosses carried by the families of the Bloody Sunday victims on the yearly commemoration march. The incident that most damaged the relationship between the British Army and the Catholic community was `` Bloody Sunday '', 30 January 1972. During an anti-internment march in Derry, 26 unarmed Catholic protesters and bystanders were shot by soldiers from the 1st Battalion, Parachute Regiment ; fourteen died. Some were shot from behind or while trying to help the wounded. The Widgery Tribunal largely cleared the soldiers of blame, but it was regarded as a `` whitewash '' by the Catholic community. A second inquiry, the Saville Inquiry, concluded in 2010 that the killings were `` unjustified and unjustifiable ''. On 9 July 1972, British troops in Portadown used CS gas and rubber bullets to clear Catholics who were blocking an Orange Order march through their neighbourhood. The British Army then let the Orangemen march into the Catholic area escorted by at least 50 masked and uniformed Ulster Defence Association ( UDA ) militants. At the time, the UDA was a legal organization. That same day in Belfast, British snipers shot dead five Catholic civilians, including three children, in the Springhill Massacre. On the night of 3 -- 4 February 1973, British Army snipers shot dead four unarmed men ( one of whom was an IRA member ) in the Catholic New Lodge area of Belfast. In the early hours of 31 July 1972, the British Army launched Operation Motorman to re-take Northern Ireland 's `` no - go areas ''. They were mostly Catholic neighbourhoods that had been barricaded by the residents to keep out the security forces and loyalists. During the operation, the British Army shot four people in Derry, killing a 15 - year - old Catholic civilian and an unarmed IRA member. From 1971 to 1973, a secret British Army unit, the Military Reaction Force ( MRF ), carried out undercover operations in Belfast. It killed and wounded a number of unarmed Catholic civilians in drive - by shootings. The British Army initially claimed the civilians had been armed, but no evidence was found to support that. Former MRF members later admitted that the unit shot unarmed people without warning, both IRA members and civilians. One member said, `` We were not there to act like an army unit, we were there to act like a terror group ''. At first, many of the drive - by shootings were blamed on Protestant loyalists. Republicans claim the MRF sought to draw the IRA into a sectarian conflict to divert it from its campaign against the state. In May 1992, there were clashes between paratroopers and Catholic civilians in the town of Coalisland, triggered by a bomb attack in nearby Cappagh that severed the legs of a paratrooper. The soldiers ransacked two pubs, damaged civilian cars and opened fire on a crowd. Three civilians were hospitalized with gunshot wounds. As a result, the Parachute Regiment was redeployed outside urban areas and the brigadier at 3 Infantry Brigade, Tom Longland, was relieved of his command. Collusion with loyalist paramilitaries A republican mural in Belfast with the slogan `` Collusion Is Not An Illusion ''. In their efforts to defeat the IRA, there were incidents of collusion between the British Army and loyalist paramilitaries throughout the conflict. This included soldiers taking part in loyalist attacks while off - duty, giving weapons or intelligence to loyalists, not taking action against them, and hindering police investigations. The Army also had double agents and informers within loyalist groups who organized attacks on the orders of, or with the knowledge of, their Army handlers. The De Silva report found that, during the 1980s, 85 % of the intelligence that loyalists used to target people came from the security forces. A 2006 Irish Government report alleged that British soldiers also helped loyalists with attacks in the Republic of Ireland. The Army 's locally - recruited Ulster Defence Regiment ( UDR ) was almost wholly Protestant. Despite the vetting process, loyalist militants managed to enlist ; mainly to obtain weapons, training and intelligence. A 1973 British Government document ( uncovered in 2004 ), `` Subversion in the UDR '', suggested that 5 -- 15 % of UDR soldiers then were members of loyalist paramilitaries. The report said the UDR was the main source of weapons for those groups, although by 1973 weapons losses had dropped significantly, partly due to stricter controls. By 1990, at least 197 UDR soldiers had been convicted of loyalist terrorist offences and other serious crimes including bombings, kidnappings and assaults. Nineteen were convicted of murder and 11 for manslaughter. This was only a small fraction of those who served in it, but the proportion was higher than in the regular British Army, the RUC and the civilian population. Initially, the Army allowed soldiers to be members of the Ulster Defence Association ( UDA ). Despite its involvement in terrorism, the UDA was not outlawed by the British Government until 1992. In July 1972, Harry Tuzo ( the Army 's GOC in Northern Ireland ) devised a strategy to defeat the IRA, which was backed by Michael Carver, head of the British Army. It proposed that the growth of the UDA `` should be discreetly encouraged in Protestant areas, to reduce the load on the Security Forces '', and suggested they `` turn a blind eye to UDA arms when confined to their own areas ''. That summer, the Army mounted some joint patrols with the UDA in Protestant areas, following talks between General Robert Ford and UDA leader Tommy Herron. In November 1972 the Army ordered that a soldier should be discharged if his sympathy for a paramilitary group affects his performance, loyalty or impartiality. Within three years, 171 soldiers with UDA links had been discharged. In 1977, the Army investigated a UDR battalion based at Girdwood Barracks, Belfast. The investigation found that 70 soldiers had links to the Ulster Volunteer Force ( UVF ), that thirty soldiers had fraudulently diverted up to £ 47,000 to the UVF, and that UVF members socialized with soldiers in their mess. Following this, two soldiers were dismissed on security grounds. The investigation was halted after a senior officer claimed it was harming morale. Details of it were uncovered in 2011. During the 1970s, the Glenanne gang -- a secret alliance of loyalist militants, British soldiers and RUC officers -- carried out a string of attacks against Catholics in an area of Northern Ireland known as the `` murder triangle ''. It also carried out some attacks in the Republic. Lethal Allies : British Collusion in Ireland claims the group killed about 120 people, almost all of whom were reportedly uninvolved Catholic civilians. The Cassel Report investigated 76 murders attributed to the group and found evidence that soldiers and policemen were involved in 74 of those. One member, RUC officer John Weir, claimed his superiors knew of the collusion but allowed it to continue. The Cassel Report also said some senior officers knew of the crimes but did nothing to prevent, investigate or punish. Attacks attributed to the group include the Dublin and Monaghan bombings ( 1974 ), the Miami Showband killings ( 1975 ) and the Reavey and O'Dowd killings ( 1976 ). The Stevens Inquiries found that elements of the British Army had used loyalists as `` proxies ''. Through their double - agents and informers, they helped loyalist groups to kill people, including civilians. It concluded that this had intensified and prolonged the conflict. The Army 's Force Research Unit ( FRU ) was the main agency involved. Brian Nelson, the UDA 's chief ' intelligence officer ', was a FRU agent. Through Nelson, FRU helped loyalists target people for assassination. FRU commanders say they helped loyalists target only republican activists and prevented the killing of civilians. The Inquiries found evidence only two lives were saved and that Nelson / FRU was responsible for at least 30 murders and many other attacks -- many of them on civilians. One victim was solicitor Pat Finucane. Nelson also supervised the shipping of weapons to loyalists from South Africa in 1988. From 1992 -- 94, loyalists were responsible for more deaths than republicans, partly due to FRU. Members of the security forces tried to obstruct the Stevens investigation. Casualties The service held in St Paul 's Cathedral in 2008 to honour the British military personnel who took part in Operation Banner. According to the Ministry of Defence, 1,441 serving members of the British armed forces died in Operation Banner ; 722 of whom were killed in paramilitary attacks, and 719 of whom died as a result of assault, accidents, suicide or natural causes during deployment. This includes : 814 from the regular British Army ; 477 of whom were killed by paramilitaries, and 337 of whom died from other causes. 548 from the Ulster Defence Regiment / Royal Irish Regiment ; 204 of whom were killed by paramilitaries, and 344 of whom died from other causes. 17 from the Territorial Army ; 9 of whom were killed by paramilitaries, and 8 of whom died from other causes. 26 Royal Marines ; 21 of whom were killed by paramilitaries, and 5 of whom died from other causes. 26 Royal Air Force servicemen ; 4 of whom were killed by paramilitaries, and 22 of whom died from other causes. 8 Royal Navy servicemen ; 5 of whom were killed by paramilitaries, and 3 of whom died from other causes. 2 from other branches of the Army, who were killed by paramilitaries. A further 45 former British military personnel were killed during Operation Banner. It was announced in July 2009 that their next of kin will be eligible to receive the Elizabeth Cross. According to the `` Sutton Index of Deaths '', at the Conflict Archive on the Internet ( CAIN ), the British military killed 305 people during Operation Banner. 156 ( ~ 51 % ) were civilians 127 ( ~ 41 % ) were members of republican paramilitaries, including : 110 members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army 11 members of the Official Irish Republican Army 5 members of the Irish National Liberation Army ( INLA ) 1 member of the Irish People 's Liberation Organisation ( IPLO ) 13 ( ~ 4 % ) were members of loyalist paramilitaries, including : 7 members of the Ulster Defence Association ( UDA ) 6 members of the Ulster Volunteer Force ( UVF ) 2 were Royal Ulster Constabulary ( RUC ) officers Another detailed study, Lost Lives, states that the British military killed 301 people during Operation Banner. 160 ( ~ 53 % ) were civilians 121 ( ~ 40 % ) were members of republican paramilitaries 10 ( ~ 3 % ) were members of loyalist paramilitaries 8 ( ~ 2 % ) were fellow British military personnel 2 were RUC officers Analysis of the Operation In July 2007, under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, the Ministry of Defence published Operation Banner : An analysis of military operations in Northern Ireland, which reflected on the Army 's role in the conflict and the strategic and operational lessons drawn from their involvement. The paper divides the IRA activity and tactics into two main periods : The `` insurgency '' phase ( 1971 -- 1972 ), and the `` terrorist '' phase ( 1972 -- 1997 ). The British Army claims to have curbed the IRA insurgency by 1972, after Operation Motorman. The IRA then reemerged as a cell - structured organisation. The report also asserts that the government efforts by the 1980s were aimed at destroying the IRA, rather than negotiating a political solution. One of the findings of the document is the failure of the British Army to tackle the IRA at strategic level and the lack of a single campaign authority and plan. The paper stops short of claiming that `` Northern Ireland has achieved a state of lasting peace '' and acknowledges that, as late as 2006, there were still `` areas of Northern Ireland out of bounds to soldiers. '' The report analyses Israeli military theorist Martin van Creveld 's comments on the outcome of the operation : Martin van Creveld has said that the British Army is unique in Northern Ireland in its success against an irregular force. It should be recognised that the Army did not ' win ' in any recognisable way ; rather it achieved its desired end - state, which allowed a political process to be established without unacceptable levels of intimidation. Security force operations suppressed the level of violence to a level which the population could live with, and with which the RUC and later the PSNI could cope. The violence was reduced to an extent which made it clear to the PIRA that they would not win through violence. This is a major achievement, and one with which the security forces from all three Services, with the Army in the lead, should be entirely satisfied. It took a long time but, as van Crefeld ( sic ) said, that success is unique. The US military have sought to incorporate lessons from Operation Banner in their field manual. References Jump up ^ Taylor, Peter, Behind the mask : The IRA and Sinn Féin, Chapter 21 : Stalemate, pp. 246 -- 261. ^ Jump up to : `` Army paper says IRA not defeated ''. BBC News. 6 July 2007. Retrieved 21 March 2008. ^ Jump up to : Operation Banner Deaths ; retrieved 26 May 2014. ^ Jump up to : `` Sutton Index of Deaths : Crosstabulations ( two - way tables ) ''. Conflict Archive on the Internet. Retrieved 25 February 2016. ( choose `` organization summary '' and `` status summary '' as the variables ) Jump up ^ `` 1969 : British troops sent into Northern Ireland ''. On This Day. BBC News. Retrieved 12 January 2018. ^ Jump up to : Wilkinson, Paul ( 2006 ). Terrorism versus democracy : the liberal state response. Taylor & Francis, pg. 68 ; ISBN 0 - 415 - 38477 - X ^ Jump up to : `` Operation Banner : An analysis of military operations in Northern Ireland '' ( PDF ). Ministry of Defence. 2006. Retrieved 31 July 2009. Jump up ^ O'Brien, Brendan ( 1999 ). The Long War : The IRA and Sinn Féin, Syracuse University Press, p. 393 ; ISBN 0 - 8156 - 0597 - 8 Jump up ^ Albert, Cornelia ( 2009 ). The Peacebuilding Elements of the Belfast Agreement and the Transformation of the Northern Ireland Conflict. Peter Lang ( publisher ), p. 234 ; ISBN 3 - 631 - 58591 - 8 Jump up ^ Brian Rowan ( 2 August 2005 ). `` Military move heralds end of era ''. BBC News. Retrieved 21 March 2008. Jump up ^ `` Army ending its operation in NI '', BBC News, 31 July 2007. Jump up ^ No fanfare for Operation Banner, bbc.co.uk, 31 July 2007. Jump up ^ Albert, p. 236 Jump up ^ `` House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 13 September 2006 ( pt 2356 ) ''. Houses of Parliament. 13 September 2006. Retrieved 21 March 2008. Jump up ^ Ministry of Defence, nationalarchives.gov.uk ; accessed 27 October 2015. Jump up ^ `` Operation Banner : An analysis of military operations in Northern Ireland '' ( PDF ). Ministry of Defence. 2006. Retrieved 31 July 2009. Chapter 6, pp. 1 -- 2 Jump up ^ Security normalisation in Northern Ireland - Statement by Defence Secretary John Reid, Government News Network, 1 August 2005 Jump up ^ Ripley, Tim and Chappel, Mike ( 1993 ). Security forces in Northern Ireland ( 1969 -- 92 ). Osprey, pp. 19 -- 21 ; ISBN 1 - 85532 - 278 - 1 Jump up ^ More Troops Arrive in Northern Ireland Associated Press, 10 July 1997 Jump up ^ `` Sutton Index of Deaths : Organisation responsible for the death ''. Conflict Archive on the Internet ( CAIN ). Retrieved 7 November 2015. Jump up ^ `` Sutton Index of Deaths : Crosstabulations ( two - way tables ) ''. Conflict Archive on the Internet ( CAIN ). Retrieved 7 November 2015. ( choose `` organisation '' and `` status summary '' as the variables ) ^ Jump up to : `` In Everyone 's Interest : Recording All The Dead, Not Just Our Own ''. The British Army Review, issue 149. Jump up ^ Smyth, Marie. Deaths of children and young people in the Troubles. Conflict Archive on the Internet ( CAIN ). Note : For those under 18 killed by the British military, see `` Table 6 : Who killed those under 25 and under 18 ? '' Jump up ^ McGovern, Mark. `` Ignatieff, Ireland and the ' lesser evil ' '', in Discourses and Practices of Terrorism. Routledge, 2010. p. 145 Jump up ^ The Apparatus of Impunity ? Human rights violations and the Northern Ireland conflict. Committee on the Administration of Justice, 2015. p. 4 Jump up ^ `` Declassified documents reveal army lobbied Attorney General not to prosecute soldiers ''. The Detail. 15 April 2013. Jump up ^ McGovern, p. iii Jump up ^ Fintan O'Toole ( 31 July 2007 ). `` The blunt instrument of war ''. Irish Times. Retrieved 21 March 2008. Jump up ^ http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/events/troops/chap4.htm Jump up ^ Weitzer, Ronald John. Transforming Settler States : Communal Conflict and Internal Security in Northern Ireland and Zimbabwe. University of California Press, 1990. pp. 120, 205 Jump up ^ Brett Bowden & Michael T. Davis. Terror : From Tyrannicide to Terrorism. University of Queensland Press, 2008. p. 234 Jump up ^ Dillon, Martin. The Dirty War. Random House, 1991. p. 94 Jump up ^ Northern Ireland : Continued abuses by all sides, Human Rights Watch, March 1994. Jump up ^ Chronology of the Conflict - 1970. Conflict Archive on the Internet ( CAIN ) ; accessed 8 November 2015. Jump up ^ Barry Doherty, Northern Ireland Since c. 1960 ( ISBN 978 - 0435327286 ), p. 11 Jump up ^ Michael Freeman, Freedom or Security : The Consequences for Democracies Using Emergency Powers to Fight Terrorism ( ISBN 978 - 0275979133 ), p. 53 Jump up ^ Kevin Connolly ( 31 July 2007 ). `` No fanfare for Operation Banner ''. BBC News. Retrieved 21 March 2008. ^ Jump up to : Dillon, Martin ( 1999 ). The Dirty War : Covert strategies and tactics used in political conflicts. Taylor & Francis. pp. 212 -- 213. Jump up ^ Ó Fearghail, Seán Óg ( 1970 ). Law ( ? ) and Orders : The Belfast ' Curfew ' of 3 -- 5 July 1970. Dundalgan Press. pp. 35 -- 36. Retrieved 5 November 2013. Jump up ^ Alexander, Yonah ( editor ). Ireland 's Terrorist Dilemma. Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1986. p. 120 Jump up ^ Dillon, Martin ( 1999 ). The Dirty War : Covert strategies and tactics used in political conflicts. Taylor & Francis. pp. 212 -- 213. ISBN 041592281X. Jump up ^ Lauterpacht, Elihu ; Greenwood, C.J. ( 1980 ), International Law Reports, Cambridge UP, p. 198, 241, ISBN 978 - 0 - 521 - 46403 - 1 Jump up ^ IRELAND v. THE UNITED KINGDOM - 5310 / 71 ( 1978 ) ECHR 1 ( 18 January 1978 ). Jump up ^ Weissbrodt, David. Materials on torture and other ill - treatment : 3. European Court of Human Rights ( doc ) html : Ireland v. United Kingdom, 1976 Y.B. Eur. Conv. on Hum. Rts. 512, 748, 788 - 94 ( Eur. Comm'n of Hum. Rts. ) Jump up ^ Joint Committee on Human Rights, Parliament of the United Kingdom ( 2005 ). Counter-Terrorism Policy And Human Rights : Terrorism Bill and related matters : Oral and Written Evidence. Counter-Terrorism Policy And Human Rights : Terrorism Bill and related matters. 2. The Stationery Office. p. 110. Jump up ^ On This Day - 1972 : ' Bloody Sunday ' report excuses Army. BBC. Jump up ^ `` Bloody Sunday killings ' unjustifiable ' ''. RTÉ News and Current Affairs. Raidió Teilifís Éireann. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 15 June 2010. Jump up ^ Kaufmann, Eric P. The Orange Order : a contemporary Northern Irish history. Oxford University Press, 2007, p. 154. Jump up ^ Bryan, Dominic. Orange parades : the politics of ritual, tradition, and control. Pluto Press, 2000. p. 92. Jump up ^ Belfast Telegraph, 12 July 1972, p. 4 Jump up ^ `` Unofficial inquiry will examine north Belfast 's ' Bloody Sunday ' '', nuzhound.com, 8 November 2002. Jump up ^ `` Operation Motorman : Top secret files reveal reasons behind invasion of nationalist areas '', Derry Journal, 6 November 2015. ^ Jump up to : `` Undercover soldiers ' killed unarmed civilians in Belfast ' '', BBC News, 21 November 2013 ; retrieved 22 November 2013. Jump up ^ Ed Moloney ( November 2003 ). A secret history of the IRA. W.W. Norton & Company. pp. 119 --. ISBN 978 - 0 - 393 - 32502 - 7. Retrieved 7 February 2011. Jump up ^ Dillon, The Dirty War, pp. 55 -- 56 Jump up ^ ( 1 ) Jump up ^ Fortnight issues 302 - 12, Fortnight Publications, 1992, p. 6 Jump up ^ `` Brigadier Lane to be replaced ''. Retrieved 10 September 2015. Jump up ^ `` Pat Finucane murder : ' Shocking state collusion ', says PM '', BBC News, 12 December 2012 ; retrieved 13 December 2012. Jump up ^ `` British ' colluded with loyalists ' ''. BBC News. 29 November 2006. Jump up ^ Thomas G. Mitchell, Native vs. Settler : Ethnic Conflict in Israel / Palestine, Northern Ireland, p. 55 Jump up ^ Brett Bowden, Michael T. Davis, eds, Terror : From Tyrannicide to Terrorism, p. 234 Jump up ^ `` CAIN : Public Records : Subversion in the UDR ''. Cain.ulst.ac.uk. Retrieved 17 July 2013. ^ Jump up to : `` Subversion in the UDR '', Conflict Archive on the Internet ( CAIN ) ; accessed 27 October 2015. Jump up ^ `` Collusion - Subversion in the UDR '', Irish News, 3 May 2006. ^ Jump up to : Eldridge, John. Getting the Message : News, Truth, and Power. Routledge, 2003. p. 91 ^ Jump up to : Weitzer 1990, p. 208 Jump up ^ Ryder p. 150 Jump up ^ Potter p. 383 Jump up ^ Wood, Ian S. Crimes of Loyalty : A History of the UDA. Edinburgh University Press, 2006. pp. 107 - 108 Jump up ^ Moloney, Ed. `` Northern Ireland, 1972 : a British army - loyalist paramilitary alliance ''. The Irish Times. 19 January 2013. Jump up ^ Moloney, Ed. `` The Tuzo Plan, 1972 : Extirpate The IRA And ' Turn A Blind Eye To UDA Guns ' '', TheBrokenElbow.com, 17 June 2015. Jump up ^ Coogan, Tim Pat. The Troubles : Ireland 's Ordeal and the Search for Peace. Palgrave, 2002. p. 170 Jump up ^ CAIN : New Year Releases 2003 - Public Records of 1972, cain.ulst.ac.uk ; accessed 27 October 2015. Jump up ^ Potter, John Furniss. A Testimony to Courage -- the Regimental History of the Ulster Defence Regiment 1969 -- 1992. Pen & Sword Books, 2001. p. 376 ^ Jump up to : `` British army ' covered up ' UDR units links to UVF '', thedetail.tv, 31 July 2011. Jump up ^ Tiernan, Joe ( 2000 ). The Dublin Bombings and the Murder Triangle. Ireland : Mercier Press. Jump up ^ The Cassel Report ( 2006 ), pp. 8, 14, 21, 25, 51, 56, 58 -- 65. ^ Jump up to : `` Collusion in the South Armagh / Mid Ulster Area in the mid-1970s '' Archived 26 April 2011 at the Wayback Machine., Pat Finucane Centre ; retrieved 2 January 2011. Jump up ^ Lethal Allies : British Collusion in Ireland - Conclusions Archived 22 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine., Pat Finucane Centre ; accessed 27 October 2015. ^ Jump up to : The Cassel Report ( 2006 ), p. 4 Jump up ^ The Cassel Report ( 2006 ), p. 63, cain.ulst.ac.uk ; accessed 27 October 2015. Jump up ^ The Cassel Report ( 2006 ), p. 8 ^ Jump up to : `` Stevens Inquiry : Key people ''. BBC News. 17 April 2003. Retrieved 27 September 2013. ^ Jump up to : `` Scandal of Ulster 's secret war '', The Guardian, 17 April 2003 ; retrieved 27 September 2013. ^ Jump up to : `` Security forces aided loyalist murders ''. BBC News. 17 April 2003 ; retrieved 27 September 2013. ^ Jump up to : `` Obituary : Brian Nelson ''. The Guardian. 17 April 2003. Retrieved 27 September 2013. Jump up ^ Clayton, Pamela ( 1996 ). Enemies and Passing Friends : Settler ideologies in twentieth - century Ulster. Pluto Press. p. 156. More recently, the resurgence in loyalist violence that led to their carrying out more killings than republicans from the beginning of 1992 until their ceasefire ( a fact widely reported in Northern Ireland ) was still described as following ' the IRA 's well - tested tactic of trying to usurp the political process by violence '...... Jump up ^ `` Deadly Intelligence : State Involvement in Loyalist Murder in Northern Ireland -- Summary '', British Irish Rights Watch ; accessed 17 March 2015. Jump up ^ Human Rights in Northern Ireland : Hearing before the Committee on International Relations of the United States House of Representatives, 24 June 1997. US Government Printing Office, 1997. Jump up ^ Stevens Enquiry 3 : Overview & Recommendations Archived 10 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine... 17 April 2003 ; retrieved 27 September 2013. Jump up ^ Malcolm Sutton 's Index of Deaths from the Conflict in Ireland : Status of person killed. Conflict Archive on the Internet ( CAIN ) Jump up ^ MOD press release, mod.uk, July 2009 ; accessed 5 November 2015. ^ Jump up to : Operation Banner, Chapter I, p. 3. Jump up ^ Operation Banner, Chapter II, p. 15 : `` The British Government 's main military objective in the 1980s was the destruction of PIRA, rather than resolving the conflict. '' Jump up ^ Operation Banner, Chapter VIII, p. 4 Jump up ^ Operation Banner, Chapter II, pg 16. Jump up ^ Richard Norton Taylor and Owen Bowcott ( 31 July 2007 ). `` Analysis : Army learned insurgency lessons from Northern Ireland ''. The Guardian. Retrieved 21 March 2008. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Northern Ireland Troubles. BBC News story about the ending of Operation Banner BBC News, Operation Banner pictures `` Operation Banner : An analysis of military operations in Northern Ireland '' ( PDF ). Ministry of Defence. 2006. Retrieved 2009 - 07 - 31. Site with Roll of Honour, news and forums on Operation Banner Reeling in the Years -- 1971 : Raidió Teilifís Éireann The Troubles History of Northern Ireland History of Ireland Irish nationalism Irish republicanism Ulster unionism Ulster loyalism Books about the Troubles Participants Republican paramilitaries Provisional IRA ( timeline ) Official IRA Irish National Liberation Army ( timeline ) Continuity IRA ( timeline ) Real IRA ( timeline ) IPLO ( timeline ) Security forces United Kingdom British Army Royal Air Force Royal Navy Northern Ireland Ulster Defence Regiment / Royal Irish Regiment Royal Ulster Constabulary / Ulster Special Constabulary Republic of Ireland Garda Síochána Irish Army Loyalist paramilitaries Ulster Defence Association ( timeline ) Ulster Volunteer Force ( timeline ) Loyalist Volunteer Force Red Hand Commando Ulster Resistance Linked to : Some RUC and British Army members Political parties Unionist Ulster Unionist Party Democratic Unionist Party Progressive Unionist Party UK Unionist Party Traditional Unionist Voice Ulster Vanguard Ulster Democratic Party Nationalist Social Democratic & Labour Party Sinn Féin Irish Republican Socialist Party Workers ' Party of Ireland Republican Sinn Féin Irish Independence Party Other Alliance Party Chronology Northern Ireland civil rights movement begins ( 1967 ) August riots and beginning of Operation Banner ( 1969 ) Falls Curfew ( 1970 ) Internment without trial begins with Operation Demetrius ( 1971 ) Irish government enacts broadcasting restrictions ( 1971 ) Bloody Sunday by British Army ( 1972 ) Northern Ireland government dissolved ; direct rule from London begins ( 1972 ) Bloody Friday by IRA ( 1972 ) Operation Motorman ends no - go areas ( 1972 ) Sunningdale Agreement establishes power - sharing Assembly ( 1973 ) Ulster Workers ' Council strike brings down Agreement and power - sharing ( 1974 ) Dublin and Monaghan bombings by UVF ( 1974 ) Birmingham pub bombings by IRA ( 1974 ) Campaign of attacks in London and surrounds by IRA ( 1974 - 1975 ) Kingsmill massacre by IRA ( 1976 ) Warrenpoint ambush by IRA ( 1979 ) 1981 Irish hunger strike ; hunger striker Bobby Sands elected MP ; Sinn Féin begins to move towards electoral politics ( 1981 ) Droppin Well bombing by INLA ( 1982 ) Brighton hotel bombing by IRA ( 1984 ) Anglo - Irish Agreement ( 1985 ) Newry mortar attack by IRA ( 1985 ) Loughgall ambush by British Army ( 1987 ) Remembrance Day bombing by IRA ( 1987 ) Peace Process begins ( 1988 ) Operation Flavius, Milltown Cemetery attack and Corporals killings ( 1988 ) British government introduces broadcasting restrictions ( 1988 ) Bishopsgate bombing ( 1993 ) Downing Street Declaration ( 1993 ) Shankill bombing and Greysteel massacre ( 1993 ) Loughinisland massacre by UVF ( 1994 ) First IRA and loyalist ceasefires ( 1994 ) Docklands and Manchester bombings by IRA ( 1996 ) Drumcree riots ( 1997 ) Second IRA ceasefire ( 1997 ) Good Friday Agreement ( 1998 ) signals the end of the Troubles Omagh bombing by the Real IRA ( 1998 ) Other issues and topics Segregation Peace lines / Interface areas Parades Flags Collusion The Disappeared Shoot - to - kill policy Diplock courts Special Category Status Five techniques Punishment shootings Murals The Troubles in popular culture List of books about the Troubles Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Operation_Banner&oldid=865490302 '' Categories : 1969 establishments in Northern Ireland 2007 disestablishments in Northern Ireland 1969 in military history 1969 in the United Kingdom British Army deployments Military operations in Northern Ireland involving the United Kingdom ( 1969 -- 2007 ) The Troubles ( Northern Ireland ) Military history of Northern Ireland British Army in Operation Banner Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Use dmy dates from February 2011 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Čeština Deutsch Español Français Slovenčina Svenska Edit links This page was last edited on 24 October 2018, at 08 : 12 ( UTC ). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: when did british troops withdraw from northern ireland
Answer: After the 1998 Belfast Agreement