British spooks’ story sheds light on key aspects of modern Irish history

Perhaps inevitably, Andrew’s account of MI5’s activities in relation to the Provisionals is not a full one, although interesting new details emerge.

For instance, Harold Wilson made a secret personal offer in the 1970s to pay Libyan leader Col Gaddafi the equivalent of €550m on condition he stopped supplying arms to the IRA

THE term ‘G2’ means different things to different people. More and more, it’s the name being ascribed to the world’s two biggest powers, the United States and China. On the other hand, ‘G2’ might make you think of The Guardian newspaper’s lifestyle and culture section. What you might not necessarily know is that G2 is the name sometimes given to the Irish intelligence service which works alongside the special detective and national surveillance units of the gardaí to counter espionage and, more often, republican, loyalist and Islamic terrorism.