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ce donate create account log in personal tools donate create account log in contents move to sidebar hide top 1 background 2 build up 3 events of 6 march 4 reaction 5 aftermath 6 death on the rock 7 inquest toggle inquest subsection 7 1 police military and mi5 witnesses 7 2 civilian witnesses 7 3 verdict 8 legal proceedings 9 long term impact 10 see also 11 notes 12 references toggle references subsection 12 1 bibliography 12 2 citations 13 external links toggle the table of contents operation flavius 14 languages العربية български brezhoneg bosanski català deutsch español euskara suomi français hrvatski русский svenska türkçe edit links article talk english read edit view history tools tools move to sidebar hide actions read edit view history general what links here related changes upload file permanent link page information cite this page get shortened url switch to legacy parser print export download as pdf printable version in other projects wikimedia commons wikidata item appearance move to sidebar hide coordinates 36 08 48 n 5 21 01 w 36 1467 n 5 3503 w 36 1467 5 3503 from wikipedia the free encyclopedia 1988 british anti ira operation in gibraltar operation flavius part of march 1988 in the troubles petrol station on winston churchill avenue in gibraltar where mccann and farrell were shot pictured in 2014 type shooting location gibraltar 36 08 48 n 5 21 01 w 36 1467 n 5 3503 w 36 1467 5 3503 target provisional irish republican army seán savage daniel mccann mairéad farrell date 6 march 1988 1988 03 06 executed by special air service v t e the troubles in britain and continental europe 1970 1981 aldershot bombing old bailey bombing king s cross euston bombings westminster bombing m62 coach bombing parliament bombing tower of london bombing guildford pub bombings woolwich pub bombing birmingham pub bombings pillar box bombings talbot arms bombing bristol bombing carlton tower and portman hotel shootings caterham bombing kensington church st bomb hilton bombing piccadilly bombing walton s bombing biddy mulligan s bombing balcombe st siege west ham attack olympia bombing airey neave killing glasgow pub bombings brussels bombing chelsea barracks bombing 1982 1998 hyde regent s park bombings harrods bombing brighton hotel bombing rheindahlen bombing operation flavius 1988 netherlands attacks glamorgan barracks bombing deal barracks bombing wembley bombing roermond killings lichfield shooting carlton bombing london stock exchange bombing downing street mortar attack paddington victoria bombings london bridge bombing baltic exchange bombing staples cnr bombing sussex arms bombing stoke newington bomb 1992 manchester bombing warrington bombings 1993 harrods bombing camden bombing bishopsgate bombing finchley rd bombings heathrow mortar attacks docklands bombing aldwych bombing 1996 manchester bombing osnabrück attack see also the troubles in ireland and assassinations during the troubles part of a series on the history of gibraltar prehistory prehistoric iberia neanderthals of gibraltar gibraltar 1 gibraltar 2 medieval umayyad conquest of hispania al andalus moorish gibraltar reconquista first siege of gibraltar second siege of gibraltar third siege of gibraltar fourth siege of gibraltar fifth siege of gibraltar sixth siege of gibraltar seventh siege of gibraltar early modern eighth siege of gibraltar ninth siege of gibraltar tenth siege of gibraltar catholic monarchs marquisate of gibraltar war of the spanish succession capture of gibraltar twelfth siege of gibraltar treaty of utrecht thirteenth siege of gibraltar great siege of gibraltar 19th century royal calpe hunt 20th century military history of gibraltar during world war ii evacuation of the gibraltarian civilian population during world war ii operation felix first sovereignty referendum first constitution border closure operation flavius death on the rock 1955 constitutional crisis modern gibraltar second sovereignty referendum cordoba agreement 2006 second constitution see also history of nationality in gibraltar political development in modern gibraltar fortifications of gibraltar timeline gibraltar portal v t e operation flavius was a military operation in which three members of the provisional irish republican army ira were shot dead by the british special air service sas in gibraltar on 6 march 1988 1 2 the trio were believed to be planning a car bomb attack on british military personnel in gibraltar they were shot dead while leaving the territory having parked a car all three were found to be unarmed and no bomb was discovered in the car leading to accusations that the british government had conspired to murder them an inquest in gibraltar ruled that the authorities had acted lawfully but the european court of human rights held that although there had been no conspiracy the planning and control of the operation was so flawed as to make the use of lethal force almost inevitable the deaths were the first in a chain of violent events in a fourteen day period on 16 march the funeral of the three ira members was attacked leaving three mourners dead at the funeral of one two british soldiers were murdered after driving into the procession in error in late 1987 british authorities became aware of an ira plan to detonate a bomb outside the governor s residence in gibraltar on the day of the shootings known ira member seán savage was seen parking a car near the assembly area for a military parade fellow members daniel mccann and mairéad farrell were seen crossing the border shortly afterwards as sas personnel moved to intercept the three savage split from mccann and farrell and ran south two soldiers pursued savage while two others approached mccann and farrell the soldiers reported seeing the ira members make threatening movements when challenged so the soldiers shot them multiple times all three were found to be unarmed and savage s car did not contain a bomb though a second car containing explosives was later found in spain two months after the shootings the documentary death on the rock was broadcast on british television using reconstructions and eyewitness accounts it presented the possibility that the three ira members had been unlawfully killed the inquest into the deaths began in september 1988 the authorities stated that the ira team had been tracked to málaga where they were lost by the spanish police and that the three did not re emerge until savage was seen parking his car in gibraltar the soldiers testified that they believed the suspected bombers had been reaching for weapons or a remote detonator several eyewitnesses recalled seeing the three shot without warning with their hands up or while they were on the ground one witness who told death on the rock he saw a soldier fire at savage repeatedly while he was on the ground retracted his statement at the inquest prompting an inquiry into the programme which largely vindicated it the inquest returned a verdict of lawful killing dissatisfied the families took the case to the european court of human rights delivering its judgement in 1995 the court found that the operation had been in violation of article 2 of the european convention on human rights as the authorities failure to arrest the suspects at the border combined with the information given to the soldiers rendered the use of lethal force almost inevitable the decision is cited as a landmark case in the use of force by the state background edit see also the troubles the provisional irish republican army ira aimed to establish a united ireland and end the british administration of northern ireland through the use of force the organisation was the result of a 1969 split in the irish republican army 3 the other group the official ira ceased paramilitary activity in the 1970s the ira killed civilians members of the armed forces police judiciary and prison service including off duty and retired members and bombed businesses and military targets in both northern ireland and england with the aim of making northern ireland ungovernable 4 5 daniel mccann seán savage and mairéad farrell were according to the journalist brendan o brien three of the ira s most senior activists 6 savage was an explosives expert and mccann was a high ranking intelligence operative both mccann and farrell had previously served prison sentences for offences relating to explosives 6 7 8 the special air service is part of the united kingdom s special forces the sas was first assigned to operations in northern ireland in the early stages of the british army s deployment there but were confined to south armagh more widespread deployment of the sas began in 1976 when d squadron was committed 9 the sas specialised in covert intelligence based operations against the ira using more aggressive tactics than regular army and police units 10 11 build up edit from late 1987 the british authorities were aware that the ira was planning an attack in gibraltar the intelligence appeared to be confirmed in november 1987 when several known ira members were detected travelling from belfast to spain under false identities mi5 the british security service and the spanish authorities became aware that an ira active service unit asu was operating from the costa del sol and the members of the unit were placed under surveillance after a known ira member was sighted at the changing of the guard ceremony at the convent the governor s residence in gibraltar the authorities suspected that the ira was planning to attack the british soldiers with a car bomb as they assembled for the ceremony in a nearby car park in an attempt to confirm the ira s intended target the government of gibraltar suspended the ceremony in december 1987 citing a need to repaint the guardhouse they believed their suspicions were confirmed when the ira member re appeared at the ceremony in february 1988 12 area in front of the convent where the changing of the guard ceremony takes place in the following weeks savage mccann and farrell travelled to málaga 90 miles 140 kilometres along the coast from gibraltar where they each rented a car 13 their activities were monitored and by early march the british authorities were convinced that an ira attack was imminent a team from the sas was despatched to the territory apparently with the personal approval of the british prime minister margaret thatcher 14 before the operation the sas practised arrest techniques while the gibraltar authorities searched for a suitable place to hold the would be bombers after their arrest 15 the plan was that the sas would assist the gibraltar police in arresting the ira members identified by mi5 officers who had been in gibraltar for several weeks if they were seen parking a car in gibraltar and then attempting to leave the territory 16 events of 6 march edit according to the official account of the operation savage entered gibraltar undetected at 12 45 cet utc 1 on 6 march 1988 in a white renault 5 an mi5 officer recognised him and he was followed but he was not positively identified for almost an hour and a half during which time he parked the vehicle in the car park used as the assembly area for the changing of the guard at 14 30 mccann and farrell were observed crossing the frontier from spain and were also followed 17 they met savage in the car park at around 14 50 and a few minutes later the three began walking through the town after the three left the car park soldier g note 1 a bomb disposal officer examined savage s car and reported that the vehicle should be treated as a possible car bomb soldier g s suspicion was conveyed as certainty to four sas troopers soldiers a b c and d gibraltar police commissioner joseph canepa handed control of the operation to soldier f the senior sas officer at 15 40 19 two minutes later the sas moved to intercept the ira operatives as they walked north on winston churchill avenue towards the spanish border as the soldiers approached the suspects appeared to realise that they were being followed savage split from the group and began heading south brushing against soldier a as he did so a and b stayed with mccann and farrell and soldiers c and d followed savage 20 proposed site of ira car bomb by southport gates location between corral road and landport in gibraltar where savage was shot at the same time as the police handed control over to the sas they began making arrangements for the ira members once they were in custody including finding a police vehicle in which to transport the prisoners a patrol car containing inspector luis revagliatte and three other uniformed officers apparently on routine patrol and with no knowledge of operation flavius was ordered to return to police headquarters as a matter of urgency the police car was stuck in heavy traffic travelling north on smith dorrien avenue close to the roundabout where it meets winston churchill avenue 21 the official account states that at this point revagliatte s driver activated the siren on the police car to expedite the journey intending to approach the roundabout from the wrong side of the road and turn the vehicle around the siren apparently startled mccann and farrell just as soldiers a and b were about to challenge them outside the petrol station on winston churchill avenue 22 soldier a stated at the inquest that farrell looked back at him and appeared to realise who a was a testified that he was drawing his pistol and intended to shout a challenge to her but events overtook the warning that mccann s right arm moved aggressively across the front of his body leading a to believe that mccann was reaching for a remote detonator a shot mccann once in the back he told the inquest he believed farrell then reached for her handbag and that he believed farrell may also have been reaching for a remote detonator he shot farrell once in the back before returning to mccann he shot mccann a further three times once in the body and twice in the head soldier b testified that he reached similar conclusions to a and shot farrell twice then mccann once or twice then returned to farrell shooting her a further three times soldiers c and d testified at the inquest that they were moving to apprehend savage who was by now 300 feet 91 metres south of the petrol station as gunfire began behind them soldier c testified that savage turned around while simultaneously reaching towards his jacket pocket at the same time as c shouted stop c stated that he believed savage was reaching for a remote detonator and so opened fire c shot savage six times while soldier d fired nine times 22 all three ira members died one of the soldiers bullets believed to have passed through farrell grazed a passer by 23 24 25 immediately after the shootings the soldiers donned berets to identify themselves gibraltar police officers including inspector revagliatte and his men began to arrive at the scene almost immediately 26 at 16 05 25 minutes after assuming control the sas commander handed control of the o...
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