'Gangs and Counter Gangs' Author Sued Over Troubles Death

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NEWS FROM THE CELTIC LEAGUE

‘GANGS AND COUNTER GANGS’ AUTHOR SUED OVER TROUBLES DEATH

Kitson’s other and better known work ‘Low Intensity Operations’ became the ‘mantra’ for counter-insurgency operations in the British Army

A retired senior British Army Officer is to be sued in connection with the death of a Catholic worker murdered by paramilitaries in N. Ireland 40 years ago (see link):

http://www.rte.ie/news/2015/0427/697001-northern-ireland-frank-kitson/

Frank Kitson has been mentioned several times in posts on Celtic News most recently in our major article (PEACEKEEPING BASED ON THE RULE OF LAW vs. AN ‘INHERITED CULTURAL DNA’ BASED ON COVERT AND OFTEN UNLAWFUL ACTIONS) comparing Irish Army Peace-keeping with British Army counter-insurgency operations following the signing of a military training agreement between the two countries signed in January 2015 (see link):

https://www.celticleague.net/news/the-irish-british-military-training-ag...

In the article we quote Fred Holroyd’s book ‘War without Honour’ in which describing a lecture given by Kitson gave at the British Army base at Ashford (The Joint Services Intelligence Training Centre) in 1973 he says of Kitson:

“He was rightly considered the top man in his field. Kitson spoke very clearly and very slowly, almost as if he was addressing a crowd of schoolchildren; and I realised the tactical philosophy he was expounding was rather different from that normally associated with the British Army. The logic of the use of infiltration, pseudo-gangs and deep interrogation, to defeat terrorist opposition was nonetheless compelling. I was yet to see how it worked in practice – and just how it could involve breaking the law and imitating terrorism to achieve its ends.”
The case now being brought in Ireland covers the period when it is alleged pseudo-gangs from the loyalist community were used in attacks on Catholics. These activities are also alleged to have involved the active involvement of the British State .

Kitson is perhaps best known for authoring the military handbook ‘Low Intensity Operations, Subversion, Insurgency and Peacekeeping’ a book we have described as part of the ‘cultural DNA’ of British Army counter-insurgency teaching.

He also wrote the book ‘Gangs and Counter-Gangs’ which again promoted the merits of utilizing pseudo-gangs in counter-insurgency
Kitson ‘cut his teeth’ as a counter-insurgency specialist in both Kenya where the British security forces conducted a brutally murderous campaign against members of the Kenya Land and Freedom Army (sometimes called Mau Mau) and Malaya. His staff college skills, subsequently utilized by the British Army together with the text ‘Low Intensity Operations’, were very much a product of his period of service in Kenya and Malaya.

In light of this recent case it will be interesting to see if law firms acting for victims of British Army violence in Malaya and Kenya will contemplate similar actions.

See related link:

https://www.celticleague.net/news/batang-kali-massacre-case-has-implicat...

J B Moffatt (Mr)

Director of Information
Celtic League

27/04/15

(Please note that replies to correspondence received by the League and posted on CL News are usually scanned hard copies. Obviously every effort is made to ensure the scanning process is accurate but sometimes errors do occur.)

ISSUED BY THE CELTIC LEAGUE INFORMATION SERVICE.

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