Costello House, home of the IRSP and site of these two new boards, is named after Seamus Costello (b. 1939), who fought for the IRA during the Border Campaign and was interned in the Curragh for two years. He stayed with the Officials during the split, but was driven out in 1974 and formed the Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP) and the INLA. He was shot and killed in 1977 (WP).
Costello appears alongside one of his successors as INLA leader, Gino Gallagher, for whom see the recent Gino Gallagher, Chief Of Staff.
“Gaels against genocide in Gaza”, “Seasann CLG Naomh Pól [web] leıs an Phalaıstín [St Paul’s GAC stands with Palestine]”.
This pair of banners is on the fencing at Naomh Pól, on the Shaws Road, west Belfast. Teams at last year’s Murray Festival Of Hurling (named after St Paul’s player Liam Murray – Belfast Media) posed with the banner above (Fb).
“Service workers – Community – Environment – Diversity”. The “#GoodForNothing” campaign, launched in 2015 (youtube), aimed to change common perceptions of young people by highlighting their volunteer work.
The piece is by emic (web) working with pupils from Wheatfield Primary school (Alternatives).
“Free Maduro! Free Flores! Prisoners of war.” Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores have been held in a Brooklyn (New York) detention centre since they entered “not guilty” pleas on January 5th. The next hearing has been moved from March 17th to March 26th (Roya).
This is a Lasaır Dhearg (web) banner in the railings of the Falls Park, next to the Ógra Shınn Féın (web) banner shown in Hands Off Venezuela.
Here are five images of electrical boxes along the Whiterock Road in west Belfast, featuring various GAA and youth organisations: (from top to bottom) O’Donnell’s GAC (Fb), Glór Na Móna – Pobal ⁊ Óıge (web), Corpus Christi Youth Centre (Fb), Naomh Eoın CLG (web)
“Hands off Venezuela – Dlúthpháırtíocht le muınt[ı]r Veınıséala [Solidarity with the people of Venezuela]” Commentary from Ógra Shınn Féın (web) on the recent US actions against Venezuela, which have included attacks on small boats beginning in September 2025 (WP), an embargo on oil leaving the country announced in December 2025 (Guardian), and most recently (January 2nd) air-strikes on targets in and around Caracas and the capture of Nicolás Meduro and Cilia Flores (BBC). After the removal of Meduro, US President Donald Trump said that the US would run Venezuela and that between 30 and 50 million barrels-worth of Venezuelan oil would be shipped to the US, sold, and the proceeds disbursed by Trump himself “to ensure it used to benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States” (AP).
For a history of the image, which shows a Venezuelan hand grabbing a US hand, see England, Get Out Of Ireland.
These placards for two local flute-bands are on light-poles in Markethill: above, the Kilcluney Volunteers flute band (Fb), below, the Markethill Protestant Boys (Fb). The crossed rifles and RIR emblem, and the graveside mourner and poppies, are WWI imagery; Markethill men joined the second battalion of the Armagh brigade of the Ulster Volunteers and (in the Great War) the ninth battalion of the Royal Irish Fusiliers. (See also UVF 3rd Battalion Armagh in Tandragee).
Killeshandra, County Cavan, is located near the Lough Oughter system of lakes, which is home to a wide variety of fish, including the roach, tench, perch, bream, and pike (Island View Cavan pdf) featured in this Rob Hilken (web) piece in the centre of town.
“The Tandragee company of the Ulster Volunteer Force were formed in 1913 as part of the wider Ulster fight against Home Rule. Tandragee ‘B’ Company where [were] part of the third battalion of the County Armagh Regiment UVF with headquarters in Tandragee Castle. Upon the outbreak of the Great War many of the Tandragee Volunteers joined the 9th Service Battalion Royal Irish Fusiliers of the 36th (Ulster) Division.”
The 9th battalion comprised volunteers from Armagh, Monaghan, and Cavan.
For a fuller version of the photograph, see Cyberprod.
The Cavan County Museum (web) in Ballyjamesduff includes a “WWI trench experience”, with 350 metres of trench and more than 6,000 sand-bags. The Cavan volunteers joined the 9th battalion of the Royal Irish Fusiliers (108th brigade of the 36th). The officer commanding of the Division, Oliver Stewart Wood Nugent, was from Cavan (History Ireland).
“Battle Of The Somme 1st July – 18th November 1916”, “”Comrade, friend, foe/come home, come home/tired, broken bones.//Remember them,/remember them all,/comrade, friend, foe.//After war comes peace/and when peace comes/never let it go.//And never ever forget/to remember them,/comrade, friend and foe.” – Jim Cleary, Virginia.”
“”The 36th (Ulster) Division had 5,500 casualties on July 1st 1916 and were men drawn mostly from one community in the province of Ulster. Nearly 2,000 soldiers from cities, towns, villages and town lands of the North were killed in the first few hours of fighting. The 16th (Irish) Division had 4,330 casualties in September 1916, of whom 1,200 were killed. These casualties came mainly from the other three provinces of Ireland.” – Department Of An Taoıseach”
