Spycops unit ‘entirely targeted the left and Irish campaigns,’ inquiry hears
A demonstrator outside the Royal Courts of Justice, London, in October 2018
by Bethany Rielly
SPYCOPS operating in a top-secret police unit originally targeted only left-wing and Irish-related groups, an inquiry into the scandal has heard.
The Undercover Policing Inquiry finally began hearing evidence today, six years after it was launched to investigate two spycop units which together infiltrated over 1,000 progressive groups over four decades.
The first stage of the inquiry, which will take place over the next three weeks, focuses on the early years of the Metropolitan Police’s Special Demonstration Squad (SDS).
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