Simon Cursey

Some thought it stood for 'Military Reconnaissance Force', others 'Mobile Reconnaissance Force'. Many people thought it didn't exist at all . . .

For decades there has been argument in the media and amongst politicians about the possible existence and extent of a shoot-to-kill policy in Northern Ireland. MRF Shadow Troop confirms there was such an agenda in the early, chaotic days of British military intervention across the Irish Sea. But amongst the mountain of speculation there is little of any accuracy or authority relating to this period.

The speculation about the unit's name and mission only added to the uncertainty amongst their targets: members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, the IRA, the provos. Simon Cursey was recruited into the Military Reaction Force—the unit's true name—in 1972. This book is his personal account of his time with the group and in it he reveals the truth about their operations—the briefings, missions, political wrangling, and government-sanctioned law-bending.

MRF Shadow Troop is a fascinating, exciting but above all accurate historical text about the pioneers of counter-terrorism.