| Balcombe Street Gang | |
|---|---|
| Leaders | Joe O'Connell |
| Dates of operation | 1974–1975 |
| Headquarters | Safe houses in London |
| Active regions | Mainly London |
| Ideology | Irish republicanism |
| Size | 4 involved in the Balcombe Street Siege, plus 2 others involved in the unit before Balcombe Street Siege.[1] |
| Part of | Provisional Irish Republican Army |
| Opponents | British Army, London Police, British Establishment targets, Economic targets. Attacks include:
|
| Battles and wars | the Troubles |
The Balcombe Street Gang was a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) active service unit (ASU) (also known as the Balcombe Street Four or the Balcombe Street Unit) who carried out a bombing campaign in southern England in the mid-1970s. The majority of their attacks and attempted attacks took place in London and the rest in Surrey, Hampshire and Wiltshire. Between October 1974 and December 1975 they carried out approximately 40 bomb and gun attacks in and around London, sometimes attacking the same targets twice. The unit would sometimes carry out two or more attacks in one day; on 27 January 1975 they placed seven time bombs in London.[2]
On 25 November 1974, they carried out three bomb attacks in the centre of London injuring 20 people.[3] They were eventually caught during the Balcombe Street siege in December 1975, thus ending their 15-month bombing campaign in England. They have been described as "the most violent, ruthless and highly-trained unit ever sent to Britain by the Provisional IRA".[4][5]