Brian "Ginger" Gillen (born 1956/1957)Gillen age given as 58 as of 8 September 2015, irishtimes.com; accessed 24 September 2015. was alleged to be a volunteer in the Belfast Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and, later, named to the IRA Army Council.Sinn Fein leaders ordered to court , scotsman.com; accessed 24 September 2015. His solicitor was Pat Finucane, who was shot dead by loyalists in 1989.
In 1995 Gillen, as Officer Commanding of the IRA's Belfast Brigade, was a member of the IRA Executive and was critical of the strategy employed by Gerry Adams. In 1997, he was elected to the Army Council with the backing of Adams, after he backed the leadership over dissident republicans who wished to steer the IRA in a more hardline direction.A Secret History of the IRA, pp. 477-479.
In 2000, Gillen, along with Adams, Martin McGuinness, Pat Doherty and Brian Keenan were issued with a subpoena, in order to appear at Northern Ireland High Court as part of a civil action which was taken by relatives of the 29 Omagh bombing victims.Adams is subpoenaed by Omagh relatives to appear at civil action, irishtimes.com; accessed 24 September 2015.
References
External links Brian Gillen, ex-Belfast Brigade boss, sued police over assault, belfasttelegraph.co.uk; accessed 24 September 2015.