Movie title: '71

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2614684/

Generic synopsis: "A young and disoriented British soldier is accidentally abandoned by his unit following a riot on the deadly streets of Belfast in 1971."

As you probably know it is between pro-unionist Protestants and pro-independance Catholics (most of them wants to become apart of Ireland). When it comes to classifying the conflict it really depends on your definition or your preferred definitions of conflicts.

It could be classified as a civil war because it is mostly internal in the United Kingdom. I would not classify it as an apartheid regime, Sunni VS Shiite or Urban race riots.

Most recent events i would compare it to are canadian french vs. english speaking conflicts, even though there has not been the same widespread use of violence. You could also compare it with the Basque in Spain or the tensions between different linguistic groups in Belgium. When using these examples i would like to point out that the conflict arises from ethnic groups political control over a territory.

If you want a precise word for it i would call it a ethno-nationalist civil strife but like all definition this could be argued against.

I don't have any good sources right now since my bookshelf is at home but if you want i can give you some litterature on the subject :)

The most common description among academics is that the conflict is ethnic. Religion is a signifier of ethnicity but actual doctrine and practice are irrelevant; as Dr. Dominic Bryant of Queens University Belfast said to me recently, "no one has been killed here over transubstansiation for hundreds of years." The two ethnic groups are defined by political loyalty, culture and religion. This is one reason why even though paramilitary violence has been much reduced by the peace process, sectarian problems persist.

Paramilitaries tended to emerge from the most marginalised parts of their communities but are not very representative. Neither the IRA or Loyalists had majority support outside of certain areas.

In the period of the movie, the situation was complicated by the fact that the various groups were fragmented. The IRA had broken into Official and Provisional factions. The traditional alliance between elite Unionism and working class Loyalists was also breaking down. The British State became an active combatant when it deployed troops but was caught between acting on its own and supporting the Unionist government. In hindsight, many historians believe that the government should have dissolved the local government and taken direct control as soon as it deployed the Army.

The confusion of agendas between officers, soldiers and intelligence is depicted in the movie. It is somewhat biased towards the ordinary squaddies but otherwise gets the tone about right.

Sources:

Claire Mitchell, Religion, Identity and Politics in Northern Ireland (2006)

Jennifer Ruane and Joseph Todd, *The Dynamics of Conflict in Northern Ireland * (1998)

M.L..R Smith, *Fighting for Ireland, the military strategy of Irish republican movement (1997).

Peter Taylor, The Provos the IRA and Sinn Féin