Ulster Defence Association

The Ulster Defense Association (UDA) was formed in 1971 from a number of neighborhood watch groups and vigilante organizations in Belfast. After emerging in response to the outbreak of "the Troubles," the UDA quickly became the largest loyalist paramilitary organization and remained so throughout the Troubles. Its goal was to defend Protestant loyalist areas and combat Irish republican dissident groups. The UDA used the Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF) name as a cover for sectarian killings. Despite the well-established relationship, the UDA itself was not listed as a proscribed organization until 1992. The UDA was a large and decentralized organization, led by an inner council of six regionally-based leaders, each with veto power. After failing to follow through on its 1994 ceasefire, the UDA finally decommissioned its arsenal in 2010.