David O'Connell and other IRA leaders at a press conference
The IRA Army Council was the decision-making body of the Irish Republican Army. The Army Council became the leaders of the Provisional IRA in December 1969, and Gerry Adams and David O'Connell were two leaders of the council during the insurgency against the United Kingdom in Northern Ireland. By 2008, the council was no longer operational or functional, but it was still in existence.