Military documents declassified by the Irish government show that the Irish army planned to launch guerrilla attacks in Belfast in 1969.

According to the details revealed in the Sunday Times, among strategic locations to be targeted were the BBC’s television studios, the docks, airport and key industries.

According to the documents declassified in 2004, the guerrilla plot, codenamed Exercise Armageddon, was designed to draw Northern Ireland security forces away from border towns, allowing Irish troops to be established there.

In a TV documentary, presenter Tom Clonan, a security analyst, says the proposed guerrilla forces would have been Irish soldiers trained for special forces operations.

The documents show that a special board set up to look at the Republic’s response to the Troubles outbreak, ruled out a conventional military operation.

The strategy was to use an unconventional plan to defend nationalists living in Northern Ireland.

The papers reveal 2,817 troops were needed for the operation, but only 2,136 were available.

Mr Clonan said the papers tell of how army strategists drew up military plans after then Taoiseach Jack Lynch said in August 1969 that the Irish government would not stand by and watch innocent people being hurt.

The historic October 1969 document noted the majority of vital installations — such as Belfast city airport, the television studios, docks and main industries — are located in the north-eastern part of the province, some distance from the border, and suggested operations should be unconventional.

Mr Clonan said the second part of the plan was about launching two infantry-company attacks, with about 120 troops, into Derry and Newry. He said, according to the document, the operation would have to be unilateral — with no declaration of war.

It would be an attack without warning.

In the document, military planners say an attack would leave the south exposed to the threat of retaliatory punitive military action by UK forces on the Republic and concluded any operations undertaken against Northern Ireland would be “militarily unsound”.

Apparently, lack of morale was a problem facing the Irish army.

Military officials also planned for soldiers being cut off in Donegal, if British forces broke through between Belleek and Ballyshannon.

However, details of the deliberations at the time reveal that planners said because of the vulnerability of the county of Donegal, plans should be prepared to provide for the continued existence there of the Republic’s units, should the area be isolated by British action.

Belfast Telegraph