This article is the first critical analysis of terrorism disengagement by the Official Irish Republican Army (OIRA). This process was conducted in instalments over nearly three decades. It has not been theoretically assessed as far as studies on ‘how terrorism ends’ are concerned, and it does not fit into any existing models of terrorism disengagement. The end of terrorism in relation to the OIRA is not only the story of a terrorist organisation ending its armed activities, but also a case study of terrorism disengagement with important policy implications for decision-makers faced with the threat of terrorism. While noting that OIRA’s activities did not end because of “defeat”, the article argues that the best way to end terrorism is actually to create the conditions in which terrorism could not appear or thrive, something that was missing in a lot of terrorism studies literature at the time of writing.