List of weapons used by the Irish National Liberation Army
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List of weapons used by the Irish National Liberation Army during The Troubles (1969–1997).
Sources
Obtaining arms was one of the greatest difficulties faced by the INLA in its early years. Their Marxism made them beyond help from Catholic Irish-America, who had traditionally been a lifeline for funds and weapons for Irish republicans engaged in armed struggle. At a time when the Provisional IRA seemed replete with Armalites, the INLA was mainly armed with shotguns, which the rank and file wryly took to calling "Costello-ites" after their leader. The INLA's main source of arms early on was from sympathizers in the Middle East, from where they imported a contingent of AK-pattern rifles in 1978 and later much larger shipments of arms via a French contact.[1]
Small arms
| Model | Image | Caliber | Type | Origin | Details | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pistols | ||||||
| PA63 | .jpg) | 9×18mm Makarov | Pistol |  Hungarian People's Republic | [2] | |
| Walther PPK |  | 9×17mm Short (.380 ACP) | Pistol |  Germany | Stolen from an off-duty Royal Irish Regiment soldier's car in Dublin in 1994.[3] | |
| Rifles | ||||||
| Lee–Enfield | .303 British | Bolt action rifle |  United Kingdom | Used in a sniper attack as late as 1989.[4] | ||
| M1 Garand |  | .30-06 Springfield | Semi-automatic rifle |  United States | [5] | |
| Ruger Mini-14 |  | 5.56×45mm NATO | Semi-automatic rifle | United States | [6] | |
| SKS |  | 7.62×39mm | Semi-automatic rifle |  Soviet Union | [7] | |
| Springfield Armory M1A |  | 7.62×51mm NATO | Semi-automatic rifle | United States | [8] | |
| Assault rifles | ||||||
| AK-47 |  | 7.62×39mm | Assault rifle | Soviet Union | [9] | |
| M16 |  | 5.56×45mm NATO | Assault rifle | United States | ||
| CAR-15 Commando |  | 5.56×45mm NATO | Assault rifle | United States | Imported around 1985.[10] | |
| Sig 540 |  |
5.56×45mm NATO | Assault Rifle |  Switzerland |
Reportedly taken from an INLA arms cache by the IRA in 1984.[11] Also reported in the possession of the INLA in Newry in 1986.[12] "Swiss-made automatic weapon" reportedly used in attack on UDR soldier in Armagh in 1987.[13] | |
| RK 62 |  | .223 Remington/5.56×45mm NATO | Assault rifle |  Finland | Several smuggled into Ireland in late 1984[14] and used in several INLA attacks, including abortive assassination attempt targeting Ian Paisley.[15][16] A single example seen at INLA funeral in 2019. Possible civilian version with long barrel and different muzzle brake, chambered in .223/5.56.[17] | |
| Submachine guns | ||||||
| M3 submachine gun |  | .45 ACP | Submachine Gun | United States | [18] | |
| Sterling submachine gun |  | 9×19mm Parabellum | Submachine Gun |  United Kingdom | [19] | |
| Uzi |  | 9×19mm Parabellum | Submachine Gun |  Israel | ||
| Škorpion vz. 61 |  | 9×19mm Parabellum | Submachine Gun |  Czechoslovak Socialist Republic | [20] | |
| MP5 |  | 9×19mm Parabellum | Submachine Gun | West Germany | Stolen from a Royal Ulster Constabulary vehicle in May 2000.[21] | |