Army operation ending in the North after 38 years
Policing in Belfast and in Derry will be the same as in Brighton or Liverpool with the ending of British Army support for the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) at midnight tomorrow.
The closure of Operation Banner marks the completion of a remarkable sea-change in the security situation in the North.
The military support for policing began amid street riots, interfactional clashes and bombings in 1969. At 38 years it is the longest army operation in British military history.
There will be no sudden overnight withdrawal – military numbers are already down to below the 5,000 level that has been set for a peace-time garrison with soldiers spread around 10 locations across the North
The remaining military bases will be places to train and rest between operations abroad.
British soldiers based in the North will most likely serve in Iraq and Afghanistan, but they could be called by the civil powers to help locally as they have been with the flooding in England.
Because of the continuing low level threat from dissident republicans, British Army bomb disposal teams will maintain a presence. At the same time helicopter training flights will continue in preparation for duties abroad.
Ironically, if the security situation in the North were to deteriorate and the PSNI decided it needed help, it would almost certainly be soldiers flown in from England, Scotland or Wales who were used.
Colonel Wayne Harber, deputy commander of 39 Infantry Brigade – the last operational brigade in the North – said today: “The ending of Operation Banner is a moment for reflection in terms of what has gone before and what has been done over 38 years.
“The great thing is the ending of the conflict in Northern Ireland and the optimism with which the people look forward to the future; we share that optimism.”
