Northern Ireland: The IRA Resurgence

In Northern Ireland, peace is a fragile illusion. Despite the 1998 Good Friday Agreement ending a bloody 30-year civil war, deep-rooted divisions persist between Catholic nationalists and Protestant unionists. In Belfast and Derry, towering walls still separate neighborhoods, and nightly gate closures echo the scars of sectarian violence. Each summer, rival bonfires and parades reignite historical hatred, while paramilitary groups continue to enforce brutal justice in impoverished areas. Young people grow up in caged homes and learn to fear the “other side.” Paramilitaries operate as criminal gangs, recruiting youths, issuing threats, and punishing dissent with knee-cappings and beatings. Amid growing fears of renewed violence, sparked in part by Brexit’s border impact, some still fight for peace through sport and cultural reconciliation. This is a story of a society still at war with itself—where identity, territory, and trauma remain locked in conflict, and where healing seems just out of reach.