Provos (Noun)
Meaning
A militant organization of Irish nationalists who used terrorism and guerilla warfare in an effort to drive British forces from Northern Ireland and achieve a united independent Ireland.
Classification
Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects.
Examples
- The Provos, as they were commonly known, carried out numerous bombings and shootings against British targets in Northern Ireland.
- The Provos were seen as a radical offshoot of the traditional Irish republican movement, and their tactics were widely condemned by governments on both sides of the Irish Sea.
- In the early 1970s, the Provos began to target British soldiers and police officers in Northern Ireland, sparking a cycle of violence that would last for decades.
- The Provos' campaign of violence was fueled by a deep-seated resentment towards British rule in Northern Ireland, which they saw as an historic injustice.
- Despite their use of violence, the Provos claimed to be fighting for a democratic and peaceful united Ireland, and their leaders would eventually play a key role in negotiating the Good Friday Agreement.