Shoot-to-kill policy in Northern Ireland

During the period known as "the Troubles" in Northern Ireland (the second half of the 20th century), the British Army and Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) were accused by Republicans of operating a "shoot-to-kill" policy, under which suspects terrorists on murder missions were alleged to have been deliberately killed without any attempt to arrest them. Such a policy was alleged to have been directed almost exclusively at suspected or actual members of Irish republican paramilitary groups. The Special Air Service (SAS) is the most high-profile of the agencies that were accused of employing this policy, as well as other British Army regiments, and the RUC.

Notable incidents alleging the use of the shoot-to-kill policy include the Loughgall ambush, Operation Flavius in Gibraltar, and an incident in Strabane. The SAS killed a total of 14 Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) and Irish National Liberation Army (INLA) members at these locations.

Other high-profile incidents involving alleged shoot-to-kill incidents occurred in Belfast, Derry, East Tyrone and South Armagh. The killing of Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) member Brian Robinson by undercover soldiers is notable for being the most prominent of the very few alleged "shoot-to-kill" incidents where the victim was a loyalist.

On 24 May 1984 an inquiry under Deputy Chief Constable John Stalker of the Greater Manchester Police was opened into three specific cases where it was alleged that a specially trained undercover RUC team known as the "Headquarters Mobile Support Unit" had carried out a "shoot-to-kill" policy:

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