| Osnabrück mortar attack | |
|---|---|
| Part ofthe Troubles | |
 ASpartan armoured carrier, a type of vehicle deployed at Osnabrück as part of the4th Armoured Brigade | |
  | |
| Location | 52°18′1″N7°58′59″E / 52.30028°N 7.98306°E /52.30028; 7.98306 Osnabrück, Germany |
| Date | 28 June 1996 18:50 (UTC+01:00) |
| Target | British Army Quebec barracks |
Attack type | Mortar |
| Deaths | 0 |
| Injured | 0 |
| Perpetrators | Provisional IRA |
TheOsnabrück mortar attack was an improvisedmortar attack carried out by aProvisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) unit based in mainland Europe on 28 June 1996 against theBritish Army's Quebec Barracks atOsnabrück Garrison nearOsnabrück, Germany.
The main participants inthe Troubles, in particular theBritish Government and the IRA, had accepted by the early 1990s that they could not resolve the conflict by force. The IRA believed that greater progress towards republican objectives might be achieved by negotiation.[1] In this context, the IRA declared a "permanent cessation" of hostilities on 31 August 1994.[2]
The IRA called off this ceasefire on 9 February 1996 because of the exclusion ofSinn Féin from the peace talks. They ended the truce by detonating atruck bomb at Canary Wharf in London, which caused serious damage to property and, despite advance warning from the IRA, the deaths of two civilians. In early June 1996, anothertruck bomb devastated Manchester city centre.
The Provisional IRA activities of 1996–1997 were used to gain leverage in negotiations with the British government during that period.[3]
The attack took place at 18:50, local time, when threeMark 15[4] mortar bombs were launched from an openFord Transit van. The devices contained more than 180 lb (81.64 kg) of explosive in each projectile. The van had been modified by a former British Army engineer, Michael Dickson, who built the launch platform and aimed the tubes towards the barracks.[5] The tubes were screwed to the floor of the van and masked with tarpaulins.[6] Two of the bombs fell short of the perimeter fence and failed to explode, but the third went off 20 yards (18.3 mt) inside the base, leaving a crater near a petrol pump. No fire was ignited, but several buildings, cars and armoured vehicles[7] were damaged by the blast.[8][9] The destruction was described as 'substantial'.[10] There were 150 soldiers inside the facilities at the time,[5] but none were injured.[10] An explosive charge was left in the vehicle with the intention of destroying forensic evidence, but the intact van's plates allowed it to be traced toYorkshire.[9]
The IRA unit was composed of five members, two of them women, who had rented a holiday home in northern Germany where they built the mortar launchers. Dickson later claimed at his trial that he had no experience in handling explosives during his career in the British Army'sRoyal Engineers. Dickson had served in several British bases in Germany, but never in Northern Ireland.Róisín McAliskey (daughter of republican activistBernadette Devlin McAliskey) and Jimmy Corrie were also suspected of being members of the cell. The primary aim of the IRA with these events was reportedly to establish a permanent presence in mainland Europe.[5]
John Major,Prime Minister of theUnited Kingdom, said that the assault showed how the IRA and Sinn Féin were isolating themselves from the peace process.[9]John Bruton,Taoiseach ofIreland, described the IRA strategy as "utterly pointless".[11]
Whereas in 1994–95, the BritishConservative Party government had refused to enter public talks with Sinn Féin until the IRA had given up its weapons, theLabour Party government in power by 1997 was prepared to include Sinn Féin in peace talks before IRA decommissioning. This precondition was officially dropped in June 1997.[12]
Michael Dickson was arrested in December 2002 on an international arrest warrant relating to the 1996 mortar attack whilst he was driving a lorry-load ofcontraband cigarettes and tobacco atRuzyne Airport in theCzech Republic. He was extradited to Germany and sentenced to six and a half years forattempted murder and setting off an explosion.[5] He served his sentence inCelle maximum security prison in Germany, and was released after serving 27 months of his sentence.[13] Róisin McAliskey battled successfully against the extradition warrant issued by Germany.[10]
52°18′1″N7°58′59″E / 52.30028°N 7.98306°E /52.30028; 7.98306