Last soldiers leave south Armagh
Another major milestone in the North’s return to normality was being reached today with the last soldiers leaving the former IRA stronghold of South Armagh.
The army is closing down its last base in the border region at Bessbrook.
At the height of the troubles, Bessbrook boasted the busiest heliport in Europe, but the last flight took place at the weekend.
The pretty 19th century model village, which became home to the military, is also where the last solider was killed by the IRA.
Lance Bombardier Stephen Restorick was shot dead by a long-distance sniper while operating a security checkpoint in 1997. He was the last of 763 military personnel to die in the North.
The withdrawal from Bessbrook is one of the last high-profile events before the army ends its official role of supporting the police in the North on July 31.
Operation Banner has been the longest single campaign in British military history, stretching back more than 35 years to the early 1970s.
Where once there were more than 30,000 troops in the North, there are currently 5,600 army and RAF personnel and that will reduce to no more than 5,000 by the end of next month.
At one point, there were 104 military bases in the North but there are now less than 20 and that too is set to fall further in the coming weeks.
Sinn Féin MP for Newry & Armagh, Conor Murphy, welcomed the departure from Bessbrook.
The regional development minister in the new power-sharing Stormont government said: “This is obviously welcome news for the community of South Armagh who have had to live under British military occupation for the past 30 years.
“Sinn Féin made the issue of demilitarising communities like South Armagh a central part of the political negotiations. We are happy we have now arrived at this point.”
