Overview
In the early hours of 30 April 2003, twelve armed and uniformed officers accompanied by four plain-clothes detectives burst into Alan Barker's house. They stayed for hours, turning over rooms, seizing documents, impounding computers, files and anything else that interested them. The family were treated as terrorist suspects, the operation resembling so many others in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. But Alan Barker was and is no terrorist. In fact, he has spent his adult life fighting terrorism on the streets of his native province. arker belonged to Special Branch, the RUC s elite unit dedicated to fighting the Provisional IRA, the INLA and loyalist terrorists. He gives a gripping insider's account of life on the frontline and demonstrates how the RUC used sophisticated listening devices and informants, including the notorious supergrass Raymond Gilmour, in their fight to gain the upper hand. After nearly 30 years of loyal service, Barker retired angry and disillusioned about what he views as the government's capitulation to the terrorists. This is the book that Downing Street and the Northern Ireland Office didn t want you to read. It is a story of courage under fire, g
Full Product Details
Author: Alan Barker
Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd
Imprint: Mainstream Publishing
Edition: New edition
Dimensions:
Width: 12.90cm
, Height: 1.40cm
, Length: 19.80cm
Weight: 0.169kg
ISBN: 9781845960681
ISBN 10: 1845960688
Pages: 240
Publication Date: 05 January 2006
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Professional and scholarly
,
General/trade
,
Tertiary & Higher Education
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Out of Print
Availability: Out of stock
Reviews
Shocking, thrilling, spellbinding (Book of the Year) News of the World Gives an honest account of the motivations and driving forces behind the RUC and its various off-shoots Sunday Business Post Powerful ... Northern Ireland wasn't worth the shedding of one drop of blood never mind the loss of a single life. Alan Barker's book makes that abundantly clear Sunday World
Shocking, thrilling, spellbinding (Book of the Year) * News of the World * Gives an honest account of the motivations and driving forces behind the RUC and its various off-shoots * Sunday Business Post * Powerful . . . Northern Ireland wasn't worth the shedding of one drop of blood never mind the loss of a single life. Alan Barker's book makes that abundantly clear * Sunday World *
Author Information
Alan Barker was born in Belfast in 1955 and joined the Royal Ulster Constabulary in 1973. After three years as a uniform constable he transferred into Special Branch, where he remained for 26 years until his retirement in 2002. He now lives in the south of England, where he is self-employed.
