Family of murdered N. Irish spy accept IRA denial
Reuters, April 7, 2006
BELFAST--The Irish Republican Army was not behind this week's murder of an Irish nationalist who spied for Britain, the dead man's family said on Friday, in a statement that criticized the media for revealing his whereabouts. "We acknowledge the speedy statement from the IRA disassociating themselves from this murder," the family said in a statement issued by their solicitors in Northern Ireland. "We believe that statement to be true."
The guerrilla group, which last July pledged to pursue its goal of ending British rule in the province through peaceful means, issued a swift denial on Tuesday after Denis Donaldson was shot at a remote hideout in rugged northwestern Ireland.
Police have launched a murder investigation, but say they have yet to identify a motive for the killing of the former IRA bomber who last year admitted to spying on fellow Irish nationalists on behalf of British security forces.
"In December, Denis left his home in Belfast and moved to Donegal where it was his desire that he be left alone to rebuild his life," the family said on Friday. "Unfortunately, he continued to be pursued by sections of the media, some of whom gave details about his whereabouts...We would ask those politicians and media commentators who have sought to use this tragedy to score cheap political points to stop doing so."
Senior members of the IRA's political ally, Sinn Fein, have pointed out that Donaldson's former British spy masters may also have wanted to silence him while others have pointed to dissident Republicans looking to settle old scores.
"The difficult situation which our family has been put in is the direct result of the activities of the Special Branch and British Intelligence agencies," Donaldson's relatives said. Sinn Fein has repeatedly pointed out that Donaldson, whose Republican credentials had been thought to be beyond question, only became an informer after being compromised by Britain.
The timing of the murder, two days before a meeting between British and Irish heads of government, also sparked speculation the killers wanted to disrupt Thursday's last-ditch bid by London and Dublin to persuade the province's politicians to share power.
