The World : British Kill 3 IRA Rebels

British troops shot to death three Irish Republican Army guerrillas in a hillside ambush in Strabane, a small market town on Northern Ireland’s border with the Irish Republic. The soldiers opened fire on the three in a field, a police spokesman reported. The army said the three, including a 16-year-old, were on a terrorist mission; the IRA said the men were “on active service.” Roman Catholic politicians reacted angrily to the incident, accusing the security forces of shooting to kill without sufficient provocation.