Gerry Adams tells court he ‘had no involvement whatsoever’ in IRA bombings

Gerry Adams has told the High Court that he had “no involvement whatsoever” in Provisional IRA bombings in England and that he was never a part of the organisation.

The former Sinn Fein president entered the witness box on Tuesday in defence of a legal claim against him brought by three victims of bombings in England in the 1970s and 1990s.

John Clark, a victim of the 1973 Old Bailey bombing in London; Jonathan Ganesh, a 1996 London Docklands bombing victim; and Barry Laycock, a victim of the 1996 Arndale shopping centre bombing in Manchester, all allege that Mr Adams was a leading member of the Provisional IRA on those dates, including of its Army Council, and are seeking £1 in damages.

Mr Adams is defending the claim, saying in a witness statement that membership of Sinn Fein “does not equate to membership of the IRA”.

He also told the court that while he did not distance himself from the Provisional IRA, he was glad the organisation had “left the stage” and that there were “dastardly things that were done that should never have been done”.

Wearing a dark suit and tie, a shamrock and a badge of the Palestinian flag, Mr Adams began his evidence by wishing the judge, Mr Justice Swift, “a very happy St Patrick’s Day”.

In his 20-page witness statement, Mr Adams said he “was not involved in any way in the planning, preparation or conduct of” any of the bombings, and “have never been a senior, let alone most senior figure, in the IRA”.

He continued: “I had no involvement in or advance knowledge of the Old Bailey bombing (1973), the Canary Wharf bombing (1996) or the Manchester bombing (1996).

“I have never been charged, prosecuted or convicted of any offence in connection with any of the bombing incidents in which the claimants were injured.”

He also said: “I was never a member of the IRA or its Army Council, and I never held any role or rank within the IRA.

“I repeat that I had no involvement whatsoever in the authorisation, planning or conduct of the bombings in which the claimants were sadly injured.”

Mr Adams also said that opponents of Sinn Fein, of which he was president from 1983 to 2018, “have repeatedly sought to conflate” the party with the Provisional IRA.

“As I have always stated, Sinn Fein and the IRA are separate organisations,” Mr Adams said.

He continued: “I have no knowledge, beyond what has been widely reported in the public domain, as to the structure or decision-making processes of the IRA.”

Mr Adams told the court that he was “very conscious” that the three bomb victims had “suffered significantly”, and that his statement should not be taken “as criticism of the claimants, or as any attempt to deny or diminish their awful experiences”.

During cross-examination by barrister Sir Max Hill KC, Mr Adams agreed that 1,178 deaths were caused by the Provisional IRA, the business of which was “to resist armed British occupation and aggression in the part of Ireland that I lived in”.

He had earlier said that the ignorance of Irish history among British people is “shocking”.

Sir Max later asked Mr Adams: “It’s your business to defend many actions of the IRA, is that an accurate statement?”

Mr Adams replied: “I do not defend all the IRA actions but my position is based on the broad principle that people have the right to resist occupation.”

Sir Max continued: “You have, over a long period of time, chosen to stand by the IRA.”

Mr Adams replied: “I do not stand by everything that they did but these were my neighbours.”

He continued: “I’m glad that the IRA has left the stage, I’m glad that no one else is being killed.”

He added: “I am glad that there is a peace process but I do not distance myself from the IRA while being very, very clear that there were dastardly things that were done that should never have been done.”

Anne Studd KC, for the three bomb victims, previously told the trial that Mr Adams was “directly responsible for and complicit in those decisions made by that organisation to detonate bombs on the British mainland in 1973 and 1996”.

The barrister also said that the difference between being in “the Army” and being a member of Sinn Fein was not a “clear either/or choice”.

She added: “The claimants’ case is that none of these bombings in the United Kingdom mainland took place without the knowledge and agreement of the defendant in his role in the Provisional IRA and latterly as a member of the seven-man Army Council.”

She concluded: “There is no doubt that the defendant contributed to the peace in Northern Ireland, but the claimants say that on the evidence he also contributed to the war.”

Ms Studd also told the court that Mr Adams had “a foot in each camp” of the military and political sides of the Irish Republican movement, and that was likely “as involved as the people who planted and detonated those bombs”.

The trial is due to conclude later in March.