List of weapons used by the Irish National Liberation Army

List of weapons used by the Irish National Liberation Army during The Troubles (1969–1997).

Sources

Main articles: Irish National Liberation Army § Arms importation, and Timeline of Irish National Liberation Army actions

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		9×18mm Makarov	Pistol	Hungary	[2]
Browning Hi-Power		9×19mm Parabellum	Pistol	Belgium	[3]
CZ 75		9×19mm Parabellum	Pistol	Czechoslovakia	[4]
Walther P38		9×19mm Parabellum	Pistol	Germany	[5]
Webley Revolver		.455 Webley	Revolver	United Kingdom	[6]
Walther PPK		9×17mm Short (.380 ACP)	Pistol	Germany	Stolen from an off-duty Royal Irish Regiment soldier's car in Dublin in 1994.[7]
Rifles
Lee–Enfield		.303 British	Bolt action rifle	United Kingdom	Used in a sniper attack as late as 1989.[8]
M1 carbine		.30 Carbine	Semi-automatic Carbine	United States	[9]
M1 Garand		.30-06 Springfield	Semi-automatic rifle	United States	[10]
Ruger Mini-14		5.56×45mm NATO	Semi-automatic rifle	United States	[11]
SKS		7.62×39mm	Semi-automatic rifle	Soviet Union	[12]
AR-15		5.56×45mm NATO	Semi-automatic rifle	United States	[13]
FN FAL		7.62×51mm NATO	Battle rifle	Belgium	Intercepted as part of an arms shipment in 1995.[14]
Springfield Armory M1A		7.62×51mm NATO	Semi-automatic rifle	United States	[15]
Gewehr 43		7.92×57mm Mauser	Semi-automatic rifle	Nazi Germany	[16]
Assault rifles
AK-47		7.62×39mm	Assault rifle	Soviet Union	[17]
AKM		7.62×39mm	Assault rifle	Soviet Union	[18]
AK-63		7.62×39mm	Assault rifle	Hungary	Intercepted as part of an arms shipment in 1995.[14]
M16		5.56×45mm NATO	Assault rifle	United States
CAR-15 Commando		5.56×45mm NATO	Assault rifle	United States	Imported around 1985.[19]
Sig 540		5.56×45mm NATO	Assault Rifle	Switzerland	Reportedly taken from an INLA arms cache by the IRA in 1984.[20] Also reported in the possession of the INLA in Newry in 1986.[21] "Swiss-made automatic weapon" reportedly used in attack on UDR soldier in Armagh in 1987.[22]
RK 62		.223 Remington/5.56×45mm NATO	Assault rifle	Finland	Several used in INLA attacks in mid-1980s, including abortive assassination attempt targeting Ian Paisley.[23][24] A single example seen at INLA funeral in 2019. Possible civilian version with long barrel and different muzzle brake, chambered in .223/5.56.[25]
Submachine guns
M3 submachine gun		.45 ACP	Submachine Gun	United States	[26]
Sterling submachine gun		9×19mm Parabellum	Submachine Gun	United Kingdom	[27]
Uzi		9×19mm Parabellum	Submachine Gun	Israel
Sanna 77		9×19mm Parabellum	Submachine Gun	Rhodesia	[28]
Škorpion vz. 61		9×19mm Parabellum	Submachine Gun	Czechoslovakia	[29]
MP5		9×19mm Parabellum	Submachine Gun	Germany	Stolen from a Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) vehicle in May 2000.[30]

Explosives

Model	Image	Type	Origin	Details
IED		Improvised explosive device	Ireland	Often using Gelignite or a Soviet-made plastic explosive, possibly Semtex.
Molotov cocktail		Incendiary device	Ireland
Various models of Chinese and Soviet-made hand grenades		Hand Grenade	Soviet Union  People's Republic of China	[31]