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[Nivlac]

What happened to them. It seems not so long ago there was a report on US news stations about another bomb going off every day and now nothing.

[Wooster]

Compromise mate, that's what happened. It was a political draw.

The IRA started targeting high value areas, the UK Government saw the cost (they probably won't admit that though) involved and the two sides came to an agreement.
So the Provos are no more (although the paramilitaries on both sides still have a fair amount of presence in organised crime), some of their senior members are Members of Parliament (although the Sinn Fein members (the IRA's political wing) don't set foot in the place and are abstentionist MP's).

A big part ( I think) in their demise was probably due to 9-11, with supporters in the USA having a major wake up call on exactly the type of activity their money was going toward. After that the IRA's main source of funding started to dry up.

The nail in the coffin for the last of the real bastards in their ranks was the Omagh bombing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omagh_bombing  (I think that event basically sickened everyone, regardless of which side of the divide they were on)



(p.s. That's basically it in a nutshell...no doubt the presbyterians and catholics will come along later and 'correct' me.. )

[keasy]

The Good Friday/Stormont agreement is why you don't hear from them.
They officially gave up their weapons as they had a power share deal in N.I.as they had a devolved N.I. governemnt with a power share from both the republican and democrat/Unionist parties.
Sinn Fein is the political wing of the provos/IRA so they got what they were after, an equal voice that wasn't just dictated from London, well that's a simplified version tbh.

They are no more as they achieved enough political to have an equal say in the running of N.I.


On the other hand there are/were break away factions such as 'the real IRA' who claim to be the actual provos from yesteryear, but given the fact that the political clout and leaders of the original movement are all recognised World stage politicians the so called 'real IRA' are no more than hard core pragmatists I assume.

[Nivlac]

Thanks ...that makes sense now ....and I thought 9/11 might have played a part as well.