Provos

In January 1972 I got a phone call from the Chief Superintendent of the area. He said there was shooting going on between the ‘Provos’ (IRA) and the British Army, and would we assist them. I agreed and we made an R.V. (rendezvous) at Dungooley Cross on the County Louth – Armagh border. I got my Sergeant to organise a patrol and then went back to the Officers Mess and knocked on the boss's bedroom door. He had just come back from Dublin after a long weekend.
“Listen Sean, I’m not here. I’m still in Dublin. I haven’t got back yet as far as your concerned. You never saw me”.
“No problem, Sir”.
“You deal with it yourself Sean, whatever way you think fit. I have every confidence in you”.
“O.K. Sir, good bye”.
“Thanks a million Sean. Good Luck”.
He was a Commandant (Major) and it reminded me of Major Major in
Catch 22. “Sergeant, when I’m here I’m not here, and when I’m not here I’m here.”

We headed off at high speed in Land Rovers with the Panhard Armoured car in the rear. When we got near the area there was a group of uniformed policemen standing on the corner. An older policeman said “Be careful lads, they don’t care who they shoot”.
We heard a lot of shooting going on and we went down a narrow road towards the border, and met up with the Chief Super and Detective Sergeant Myles Hawkshaw, Special Branch. The Branch were armed with Israeli Uzi sub machine guns and they showed us, where the’Provos’ were, and asked us to stop them.
A few minutes later things went quiet. My men were deployed and we saw a white Ford Corsair, coming towards us. When the car was about 100 metres away, I noticed that the Special Branch had disappeared and were hiding behind the bushes. We had the road blocked with the Panhard, which had twin browning machine guns with a delivery of 1,500 rounds (7.62 mm) per minute. It also carried a Brandt 60 mm. Mortar. We had several GPMG’s (General purpose machine guns) 7.62 mm.
They stopped when they came to us and got out of the car with their hands up. There were four of them, two of them were well known.
The branch appeared and Hawkshaw said to the driver
“Have you got your driving licence?”
Provo: “Would you go and fuck off “.
The Branch then searched the car and found nothing. Eventually we headed back to base.
A few months later they appeared in the ‘Special Criminal Court’ Green Street, Dublin, which had been established for terrorist offences and had 3 High Court judges and no jury.
The police and the Branch had a meeting before the Court in order to organise their stories.

for sauternes , a Polish girl with mental problems