May 1971

Before the landmark 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which brought a measure of peace to Northern Ireland, "The Troubles" roiled the Emerald Isle and beyond over the course of three decades. During that time more than 3,000 people were killed by sectarian violence between the Irish Republican Army (and various splinter groups) waging a guerrilla campaign against British rule, and Protestant-aligned paramilitary groups, such as the Ulster Volunteer Force, which battled IRA targets and Catholic-owned businesses. Violence spilled beyond the borders of Northern Ireland - into Ireland, Britain and Europe - and such terror acts led to thousands of civilian deaths.

Left: Rescuers, soldiers and civilians dig with their bare hands in the still-smoking rubble of McGurk's bar on North Queen Street, Belfast, where 15 people died in a bomb blast, May 12, 1971. More than 16 others were injured in the Ulster Volunteer Force's attack on the Catholic-owned bar.

Credit: AP Photo