A photograph of Gerry Adams wearing a black beret at an IRA commander's funeral serves as definitive proof of his membership in the terrorist organisation, a former republican prisoner has testified at the High Court. The former Sinn Fein president was pictured marching in an 'honour guard' for IRA man Michael Kane in September 1971, alongside Martin Meehan, an IRA commander who later spent eighteen years in prison.
Black Beret as IRA Uniform
The image shows Adams, now seventy-seven years old, wearing a black beret which is described in written submissions as having been 'part of the uniform of the IRA.' Adams is currently being sued by three survivors of IRA bombings in England that occurred between 1973 and 1996. The claimants allege that owing to his role within the IRA, he was 'directly responsible' for terror attacks on the British mainland during the Troubles and are seeking 'vindicatory damages' of just one pound.
Adams has consistently denied he was ever a member of the IRA. This civil trial marks the first occasion he has faced direct questions about his alleged role in the terror group within an English courtroom.
Explosives Expert's Testimony
Giving evidence on the second day of the trial in London on Tuesday, former IRA explosives expert Shane Paul O'Doherty – who described Adams as 'my supreme leader' – stated there was 'no chance' a beret could be worn by someone who was not a member of the IRA at a volunteer's funeral. He emphasised that wearing one 'would bring to you the full weight of the authorities.'
'You wouldn't want to be stopped or caught in a beret,' he added, explaining that such items would normally be kept secure in an 'IRA dump.' O'Doherty asserted that an IRA 'honour guard' at a funeral would be reserved for the 'closest comrades' in the organisation to pay tribute to a 'dead comrade.'
In written submissions, Anne Studd KC, representing the claimants, argued that 'at this stage in the conflict he would never have been entitled to wear the beret unless he had taken the oath of a volunteer.' She noted, 'This was an organisation that prided itself on secrecy and loyalty.'
Background of the Witness
The court heard that Mr O'Doherty was convicted for an IRA letter bomb campaign in London and served more than fourteen years in prison. During his incarceration, he renounced his IRA membership, called for an end to the armed struggle, and later authored a book detailing his experiences within the paramilitary organisation.
He informed the court that the content of newspaper articles from the early 1970s which described Mr Adams as 'head of the IRA in Ulster' was accurate. He firmly denied claims from Mr Adams' barrister, Nick Craven KC, that his knowledge was based on 'gossip, stories and rumours.'
Survivors Seeking Justice
Adams is being sued by John Clark, a victim of the IRA's Old Bailey attack in 1973; Jonathan Ganesh, who was injured in the 1996 attack at London's Docklands; and Barry Laycock, who was injured in the attack at Manchester's Arndale Shopping Centre in the same year.
Mr Ganesh, aged fifty-three, told the High Court that he initiated legal action against Adams upon hearing the former MP was planning to sue the British government after his convictions for attempting to escape prison in the 1970s were overturned.
He stated: 'I felt that is not right for all of the innocent victims who have suffered.' His friends Inam Bashir, twenty-nine, and John Jeffries, thirty-one, who both worked at the newsagent run by Ganesh's family, were the only two people killed in the Docklands attack.
'I miss my two friends very, very much,' he said. 'I loved them. They were really good people. I miss them every single day.' He added: 'I don't suggest for one minute that Mr Adams drove the lorry or planted the bomb but I do believe he played a major part in the IRA and I thought he had some involvement with the attack.'
Timing of the Claim
Mr Ganesh was questioned on why he hadn't made a claim against Adams 'at any time in the last twenty-five years.' James Robottom, representing Adams, alleged it was a 'hell of a coincidence' that the claim coincided with the Conservative government's 2022 Legacy Act, which prohibited any new Troubles-era civil and criminal cases.
The court has already been informed that Adams 'emphatically, unequivocally and categorically denies any involvement in the bombings' and 'emphatically, unequivocally and categorically denies that he was ever a member of the IRA.' The trial is ongoing.
