The law was broken by Ireland when it let its territory be used to harbour the IRA

The bill is designed to limit the effects of the palpable Irish and European Union agenda of isolating Northern Ireland from the rest of UK.

Both parties studiously ignore the unpalatable truth that throughout the PSF/PIRA political and terrorist campaign during the Troubles the Republic of Ireland constantly broke international law by harbouring republican terrorists.

They daily broke international law by allowing their territory to be used by PIRA to set up training camps and store its terror weapons and Semtex.

They broke international law and common decency by providing a safe haven for PIRA murder gangs to leave from and return to when they slaughtered hundreds of innocents in Fermanagh, Tyrone and Armagh.

The victims and survivors of those breaches of international law by the Republic of Ireland cry out for justice, yet the vaunted EU Council of Minsters ignore their pleas, whilst pandering to the Irish demands for the UK to fulfil its human rights obligations.

The SDLP and Alliance should forcibly remind Sinn Fein that republican ethnic cleansing along the border and atrocities like La Mon and Teebane, were and are war crimes.

They should join Doug Beattie and Lord Empey in demanding that the Irish government be held accountable for its illegal actions throughout the Troubles.

Tom Nash, Derriaghy

——— ———

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers — and consequently the revenue we receive — we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to newsletter.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to the best Northern Ireland and UK news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.newsletter.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Alistair Bushe

Editor