Northern Ireland journalist killed by gunman during riot

By Amanda Ferguson

 

Journalist Lyra McKee is seen in this undated handout picture released April 19, 2019 by the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Courtesy of Lyra McKee's family and partner/Handout via REUTERS

 

BELFAST (Reuters) - A 29-year-old Northern Irish journalist was shot dead during rioting in Londonderry overnight, an attack that shocked the region and police said was likely the work of Irish nationalist militants opposed to the 1998 Good Friday peace deal.

 

Rioting hit the Irish nationalist Creggan area of the city in Northern Ireland late on Thursday after a raid by police, who said they were trying to prevent militant attacks this weekend. At least 50 petrol bombs were thrown and two cars set on fire.

 

Journalist Lyra McKee, 29, was shot dead shortly after posting a picture on Twitter of the violence, which she described as "absolute madness."

 

"Unfortunately at 11 o'clock last night a gunman appeared and fired a number of shots towards the police and a young woman, Lyra McKee, 29 years old, was wounded" and later died, Police Service of Northern Ireland Assistant Chief Constable Mark Hamilton told journalists.

 

McKee, who was named Sky News Young Journalist of the Year in 2006, was writing a book on the disappearance of young people during the three decades of sectarian in Northern Ireland that largely ended with the 1998 deal.

 

She had also written about her struggles growing up gay in the British province.

 

The death of McKee, described by her publisher Faber as a rising star of investigative journalism, was condemned by both Irish Catholic nationalist and pro-British Protestant unionist politicians.

 

British Prime Minister Theresa May described the attack as "shocking and truly senseless."

 

"This was an act of hate," Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said in a statement in front of government buildings in Dublin. "This was an attack not just on one citizen, it was an attack on all of us, our nation and our freedoms."

 

Police said they were treating the incident as a terrorist attack and had opened a murder inquiry.

 

The New IRA (Irish Republican Army) group, which has been responsible for several attacks in recent years, was most likely behind the killing, Assistant Chief Constable Hamilton said.

 

Saoradh, a political party with links to dissident militants who still embrace violence to merge Northern Ireland with Ireland, said in a statement it understood McKee was killed accidentally by a "Republican Volunteer."

 

Leona O'Neill, a local journalist at the scene of the shooting, said that after McKee was hit and fell beside a police Land Rover, officers rushed her to Altnagelvin Hospital, where she died.

 

Videos posted on social media showed police vehicles being pelted with what O'Neill said were dozens of petrol bombs, bricks, bottles and fireworks.

 

"NO ONE WANTS TO GO BACK"

 

McKee's death was described as a tragedy by U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who led a congressional delegation to Londonderry to mark the 21st anniversary of the 1998 peace deal which Washington helped broker.

 

The deal led to the decommissioning of weapons held by the main militant groups, the withdrawal of the British army from Northern Ireland and the creation of a power-sharing government.

 

But the detonation of a large car bomb outside a courthouse in Londonderry in January highlighted the threat still posed by pro-Ireland militants who rejected the Good Friday Agreement.

 

The groups, which are far smaller than those that operated before the peace deal and have very limited public support, have previously carried out attacks during the Easter period.

 

Politicians in Northern Ireland have warned that Britain's plans to leave the European Union could also undermine the peace deal and that any return of restrictive infrastructure along the Irish-Northern Irish border would become targets for militants.

 

"Those who brought guns onto our streets in the '70s, '80s & '90s were wrong," Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader Arlene Foster said on Twitter. "It is equally wrong in 2019. No one wants to go back."

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-04-20

Tragic,lets hope its not kicking off over there again,most there do not want it.

 

Sent from my SM-A720F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

 

 

 

 

4 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Politicians in Northern Ireland have warned that Britain's plans to leave the European Union could also undermine the peace deal and that any return of restrictive infrastructure along the Irish-Northern Irish border would become targets for militants.

Blame anything except the cowardly murderers, hey?

Even without having left the EU, Brexit is already causing economic damage and deaths. Congrats. 

12 minutes ago, welovesundaysatspace said:

Even without having left the EU, Brexit is already causing economic damage and deaths. Congrats. 

I hope they will find and arrest the attackers soon. 

The Spirit of IRA is still there. The solution is not a war again but a European similar to Germany's reunification. 

2 hours ago, welovesundaysatspace said:

Even without having left the EU, Brexit is already causing economic damage and deaths. Congrats. 

Blame anything except the cowardly murderers, hey?

32 minutes ago, sawadee1947 said:

I hope they will find and arrest the attackers soon. 

The Spirit of IRA is still there. The solution is not a war again but a European similar to Germany's reunification. 

Now that would stop brexit,

38 minutes ago, nauseus said:

Blame anything except the cowardly murderers, hey?

Of course the murderers are to be blamed as well. 

2 hours ago, welovesundaysatspace said:

Even without having left the EU, Brexit is already causing economic damage and deaths. Congrats. 

" police said was likely the work of Irish nationalist militants opposed to the 1998 Good Friday peace deal. "

Police have made 2x arrests, aged 18 & 19.

Edited April 20, 20197 yr by evadgib

7 hours ago, newatthis said:

12 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Politicians in Northern Ireland have warned that Britain's plans to leave the European Union could also undermine the peace deal and that any return of restrictive infrastructure along the Irish-Northern Irish border would become targets for militants.

 

7 hours ago, newatthis said:

Blame anything except the cowardly murderers, hey?

Of course you cannot blame the politicians directly. But I do wonder how many of them, both for and against, explained the ramifications of Brexit on the Irish border to the electorate BEFORE the referendum took place.

 

I doubt if many, if any did, especially the Brexit campaigners.

4 hours ago, Moonlover said:

 

Of course you cannot blame the politicians directly. But I do wonder how many of them, both for and against, explained the ramifications of Brexit on the Irish border to the electorate BEFORE the referendum took place.

 

I doubt if many, if any did, especially the Brexit campaigners.

I guess you could blame the car manufacturers for all the DUI deaths.????

4 hours ago, Moonlover said:

 

Of course you cannot blame the politicians directly. But I do wonder how many of them, both for and against, explained the ramifications of Brexit on the Irish border to the electorate BEFORE the referendum took place.

 

I doubt if many, if any did, especially the Brexit campaigners.

Why would the UK even care about the Irish Border? The EU would seem to be the ones with an incentive to secure the Irish Border in a post-Brexit world, no? 

Just now, usviphotography said:

Why would the UK even care about the Irish Border?

Geography lesson seriously required. You wouldn't be American, would you?

8 hours ago, usviphotography said:

Why would the UK even care about the Irish Border? The EU would seem to be the ones with an incentive to secure the Irish Border in a post-Brexit world, no? 

Firstly Northern Ireland is a part of the UK whether you like it or not and the effect that Brexit has there should be important to all.

 

Secondly, where on earth do you get the notion from that the EU want to secure the border? They are, in fact, very much against imposing any controls on the border and it is security incidents like this that serves to remind us of the potential problems that could well ensue if the status quo was changed.

23 hours ago, welovesundaysatspace said:

Even without having left the EU, Brexit is already causing economic damage and deaths. Congrats. 

 

Do grow up! This is dissident Republicans who are using any excuse to try and escalate violence. Bare in mind most finance themselves through extortion, drug dealing, smuggling etc. 

 

Blaming Brexit is as idiotic as blaming the EU!

 

These killers are just opportunists and it's any excuse.

3 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

I did hear there is a push for more Muslim immigration into Northern Ireland and this can only be a goood thing to have a more multicultural society.

The late Warren Mitchell (Alf Garnett) recalled being stopped on the falls rd in the 1950s by a mob and asked if he was Catholic or Protestant. Knowing that the wrong answer would lead to dire consequences he said "Neither. I'm a Jew!" This baffled the group & they let him go....

Seconds later they grabbed him again and asked "...are you a Catholic or Protestant Jew?"

 

Back on Topic; Even if Ireland were to unite or we were to revoke A50 it wouldn't stop people in the flashpoints pulling lumps off each other.

Edited April 21, 20197 yr by evadgib

1 hour ago, rott said:

As for the last paragraph you really are off a different planet.

3rd parties such as the poster to whom you replied can be forgiven for not knowing or understanding the true situation over there, and for not knowing that HMG are shafting veterans and that MSM have ignored a motorcycle rally and March by the latter on consecutive weekends up and down the country in protest.

 

May's Govt is quite rightly getting it from all directions...

 

Edited April 21, 20197 yr by evadgib

Off topic posts and replies have been removed. 

Police release men arrested over killing of N.Ireland journalist

 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/police-release-men-arrested-over-killing-n-ireland-011127303.html

Edited April 22, 20197 yr by metisdead
Oversize font reset to normal.

Highlighting the propaganda being spun locally:

 

23 minutes ago, lannarebirth said:

Police release men arrested over killing of N.Ireland journalist

 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/police-release-men-arrested-over-killing-n-ireland-011127303.html

 

Why would you change the size of the headline? It's supposed to be bigger. Just like the headline in the OP is bigger than the text.

New IRA responsible according to BBC. Apologised but what's the point? Too late. RIP Lyra.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-48018615 

The Prime minister will attend the funeral this afternoon, as will Corbyn.

(BBC, Sky)

A post commenting on moderation has been removed.