British Military Intelligence During the Troubles (1969-1984)

     The Ulster Defence Association (UDA) was the greatest enemy to Irish nationalism manifested in the IRA. It was formed in September 1971 as a legal organization with a mission to protect Ulster Protestant loyalists. Throughout the 1970s, the UDA patrolled areas of Ulster and launched undercover paramilitary attacks through its militant arm, the Ulster Freedom Fighters against the IRA. It would not be until 1992 that the UDA would be labeled as a terrorist group. 

     Throughout the Troubles, the UDA/UFF was responsible for more than 400 deaths, most of which were Irish Catholic civilians. The greatest successes of the organization came in the Milltown massacre, the Sean Graham bookmakers' shooting, the Castlerock killings and the Greysteel massacre. The UDA declared a ceasefire in 1994 and eventually ended its armed campaign in 2007. As with most paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland, however, several reprisal attacks have occurred to the present day.