Biden Selfie with Former Face of IRA Raises Eyebrows

President Biden took a picture with Gerry Adams, a prominent Irish nationalist, who was barred from British broadcasts for his position as the Irish Republican Army's (IRA) public face, during the POTUS' recent visit to Ireland.

Adams posted the "presidential selfie" on social media after 35 years as the leader of the Irish republican party Sinn Fein, Fox News reported.

During the height of the IRA's terrorist operation, which intended to overthrow British rule over Northern Ireland in the 1980s and 1990s, Sinn Fein served as the organization's political branch.

Gerry Adams denies ever being an IRA member, despite being accused of participating in terrorist acts. He was prohibited from using British broadcasts along with some Irish Republican figures by then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

In the end, Adams was crucial in separating Sinn Fein from the IRA and securing the Good Friday Agreement, effectively ending the terror initiative. He was subsequently detained in 2014 concerning a homicide from 1972, but no charges were brought against him.

Gerry Adams and Joe Biden first met during the latter's 2017 trip to Ireland. Biden was the US vice president then, while Adams was the head of Sinn Fein, per The Daily Mail.

Adams characterized their encounter in Dublin as a chance to inform Biden of efforts to reestablish democratic institutions in the North.

And in November 2020, it came to light that, against the British government's objections, Biden had pushed then-president Bill Clinton to issue Gerry Adams a visa to the United States in 1993.

Joe Biden Urges Northern Ireland To Maintain Peace

President Joe Biden encouraged people to maintain support for the Good Friday Agreement when he was in Northern Ireland. He commented on the economic improvement since the agreement concluded 30 years of sectarian warfare.

The POTUS stressed the link between peace and economic development and stated that further American investment might accelerate economic growth, especially if Belfast's political leaders can break through their present deadlock, according to PBS.

Joe Biden delivered his remarks at the new campus of Ulster University in Belfast, where he emphasized that the building's modern design and construction would have been unworkable during "The Troubles" years marked by violence.

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Ireland, Joe Biden, Britain, Uk