La Mon restaurant bombing
| La Mon restaurant bombing | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Troubles | |
| Location | Gransha, County Down, Northern Ireland |
| Coordinates | 54°32′54″N 5°49′07″W / 54.5482°N 5.8185°WCoordinates: 54°32′54″N 5°49′07″W / 54.5482°N 5.8185°W |
| Date | 17 February 1978 21:00 (GMT) |
|
Attack type
|
Bombing |
| Weapons | Incendiary bomb |
| Deaths | 12 |
|
Non-fatal injuries
|
30 |
| Perpetrator | Provisional Irish Republican Army |
The La Mon restaurant bombing was an incendiary bomb attack by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) on 17 February 1978 that has been described as "one of the worst atrocities" of the Troubles. It took place at the La Mon House hotel/restaurant near Belfast, Northern Ireland. The IRA left a large incendiary bomb, containing a napalm-like substance, outside one of the restaurant's windows. There were 450 diners, hotel staff and guests inside the building. The IRA members then tried to send warnings by telephone, but were unable to do so until nine minutes before it detonated. The blast created a fireball, killing twelve people and injuring thirty more, many of whom were severely burnt. Many of the injured were treated in the Ulster Hospital in nearby Dundonald.
Since the beginning of its campaign, the IRA had carried out numerous attacks on economic targets, killing many members of the public in the process. The IRA's goal was to harm the economy and cause disruption, which would put pressure on the British government to withdraw from Northern Ireland.
Belfast man Robert Murphy received 12 life sentences for the manslaughter of those who died. Murphy was freed from prison on licence in 1995. There are allegations that two of the IRA members involved were British double agents.
On 17 February 1978, an IRA unit planted an incendiary bomb attached to petrol-filled canisters on meat hooks outside the window of the Peacock Room in the restaurant of the La Mon House Hotel, located at Gransha, County Down, about 6 miles (9.7 km) southeast of central Belfast. After planting the bomb, the IRA members tried to send a warning from the nearest public telephone, but found that it had been vandalised. On their way to another telephone they were delayed again when forced to stop at an Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) checkpoint. By the time they were able to send the warning, only nine minutes remained before the bomb exploded at 21:00. The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) base at Newtownards had received two further telephone warnings at 20:57 and 21:04. By the time the latter call came in it was too late. When an officer telephoned the restaurant to issue the warning he was told "For God's sake, get out here – a bomb has exploded!". Although the bombers tried to warn of the bomb (the IRA often gave bomb warnings when destroying property but never when targeting the police or military), a 2012 news article claimed that the IRA were targeting RUC officers they believed were meeting in the restaurant that night. The article claimed that the IRA had got the wrong date and that the meeting of RUC officers had taken place exactly a week before.
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