Skip to main content
Army 'terror' unit murdered unarmed Irish
Ex-members speak out on Britain's secret cell

A Covert British army unit which operated in 1970s Northern Ireland gunned down and murdered unarmed civilians with seeming impunity, former members have alleged.

As well as targeting suspected IRA members, it is claimed that the shadowy Military Reaction Force (MRF) also carried out drive-by shootings of nationalists despite there being no independent evidence that they were members of the paramilitary group.

Former members of the unit told the BBC's Panorama programme that they believed they were not subject to military regulations prohibiting firing unless their lives were in immediate danger - known as the yellow card.

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
SECRET STATE: The statue of David Stirling, founder of the SAS, looks over mist around Ben Ledi mountain, Central Scotland
Features / 29 January 2026
29 January 2026

As the government quietly upgrades the role of Britain’s special forces, their growing global footprint and near-total exemption from democratic oversight should alarm us all, says ROGER McKENZIE

ALL IN A GOOD CAUSE: The statue of James Connolly in Dublin, designed by the sculptor Eamonn O'Doherty unveiled in 1996 was commissioned by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) / Pic: William Murphy/CC
Features / 30 October 2025
30 October 2025

A new group within the NEU is preparing the labour movement for a conversation on Irish unity by arguing that true liberation must be rooted in working-class solidarity and anti-sectarianism, writes ROBERT POOLE

A man walks past a banner for Feile an Phobail, also known as the West Belfast Festival, in the Falls Park, August 2022
Ireland / 30 July 2025
30 July 2025

Why not pay a visit to Feile an Phobail, a people’s festival of community arts with roots in the days of internment without trial, and where the spirit of solidarity remains undimmed, says LYNDA WALKER

ILLEGAL FROM THE START: British commandos in the south east region of Afghanistan, May 2002
Features / 20 June 2025
20 June 2025

As the cover-ups collapse, IAN SINCLAIR looks at the shocking testimony from British forces who would ‘go in and shoot everyone sleeping there’ during night raids — illegal, systematic murder spawned by an illegal invasion