State papers: Adams would have faced 'moral dilemma' if he had known of Canary Wharf bomb plans 

Former Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams 'was not aware' of the IRA's plans to end the ceasefire. Picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins Photos

Former Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams admitted to Irish officials that he would have faced a major moral dilemma if he had known in advance of the IRA’s plans to end its ceasefire with the Canary Wharf bombing in London in 1996.

New documents being released by the National Archives reveal Mr Adams felt he might not have been able to share such information if he had been aware of it due to his “republicanism".

They also show Mr Adams confirmed to senior civil servants a week after the bombing that he was unaware of the IRA’s plans for the attack.

The Canary Wharf bombing, which occurred on 9 February, 1996, killed two people and injured more than 100, with over £150m worth of damage also being caused by the explosion.

The office buildings in London's Docklands, damaged the IRA bomb blast in 1996. Picture: David Giles/PA

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The bombing occurred just days after the publication of the Mitchell Report, which detailed a process for decommissioning weapons that would take place alongside all-party negotiations.

While some talks began in late January between the SDLP, Progressive Unionist Party and Ulster Democratic Party, Sinn Féin was not permitted to be involved.

However, the Canary Wharf bombing ended all communications on a ministerial level with Sinn Féin with both the Irish and British governments.

Notes taken by officials of the meeting which was also attended by Sinn Féin’s Pat Doherty recorded that Mr Adams would have faced “serious” moral dilemmas if he had known in advance about the attack.

"Mr Adams said that he was glad that he did not know in advance about the bomb because it would have raised serious dilemmas in terms of the moral imperative to prevent or report it," the report read.

"He added that he would have been forced to override this: he would not have been able to tell people in advance, because of his republicanism."

Adams also said that, in advance of the bombing, he believed that the IRA were likely to end the ceasefire but only if the British government had not changed its position on Sinn Féin participating in the all-party talks by the end of the month.

At the time, the UK government under prime minister John Major, had proposed that the IRA needed to decommission their weapons before Sinn Féin would be permitted to enter into the discussions.

This stance was contrary to the Mitchell Report findings, which had been widely welcomed by the Irish Government and the British Labour Party.

Ahead of the meeting, Taoiseach John Bruton received a phone call from US President Bill Clinton, who labelled a statement by the IRA as “gutless” for blaming the British government for the breakdown of the ceasefire.

Attack 'took Sinn Féin leadership by surprise'

The IRA had claimed that “regrettable injuries” could have been avoided if police had responded promptly to “clear and specific warnings”. In a transcript of the call between the two leaders, Mr Clinton said that the attack had sickened him.

The Taoiseach replied that the incident had caught the Sinn Féin leadership by surprise.

“It seems to us on the face of it anyway, a lot of the Sinn Féin leadership were taken by surprise by what has happened,” Mr Bruton remarked.

He told the US president that Mr Adams was “completely taken aback” by the bombing but added that could have been an act as he had not condemned the attack but merely expressed regret about it.