informers

In his 20s, he was convicted by Israel of killing four Palestinian informers.

He concedes that “the Russian state is creating the kind of society in which people, who are informers by nature, feel happy and comfortable.”

It is a town full of exiles, planning revolution, waiting for asylum offers, always fearful of spies and informers, and living in a state of almost constant anxiety.

"It is unevidenced and unhelpful conspiracy theorising. There was no evidence of anyone being allowed to continue in criminal ventures in order to protect informers," he added.

Chief among them was Freddie Scappaticci, whom the army recruited as an agent within the IRA unit which was responsible for killing suspected informers.