Police say the New IRA are likely to be responsible for the killing of Lyra McKee
Police are treating the death of a journalist as a “terrorist incident” after violence in Northern Ireland.
29-year-old Lyra McKee was shot in the head and detectives said the New IRA “are likely to be the ones behind this.”
Searches in the Creggan area of Derry aimed at disrupting dissident republican activity ahead of the Easter weekend marking Irish independence.
Assistant Chief Constable Mark Hamilton said: “This murder demonstrates all too starkly that when terrorists bring violence and guns into the community, members of the public are placed in severe danger. It is abundantly clear that they do not care who they harm.
“This is a horrendous act, it is unnecessary, it is uncalled for, it’s totally unjustified.
“But not only is it a murder of a young woman, it is an attack again on the people of this city.”
A journalist has been killed covering riots in Derry. Her name was Lyra McKee. She was 29. She recently signed a two-book deal with Faber, who called her a "rising star of investigative journalism". This is her last tweet, sent from the scene of the unrest. pic.twitter.com/0gk1Fa7Du0
— Naomi O'Leary (@NaomiOhReally) April 19, 2019
The searches provoked rioting and more than 50 petrol bombs were thrown at the police. Two of their cars were hijacked and set alight.
Another journalist, Leona O’Neill, was at the scene when she describes a gunman firing “indiscriminately” towards police.
https://twitter.com/LeonaONeill1/status/1119027003854868481
She said a gunman “came round the corner and fired shots indiscriminately towards police vehicles.” Adding, “there were a number of houses with families – they had all spilled out on the street to see what was happening.
“There were young people, there were children on the street, there were teenagers milling about and a gunman just fired indiscriminately up the street.”
Sinn Fein’s deputy leader Michelle O’Neill condemned the “senseless loss of life,” describing it as “an attack on all the people of this community, an attack on our peace process and an attack on the Good Friday Agreement.”
She said: “I unreservedly condemn those responsible for killing this young woman.
“We will remain resolute in our opposition to the pointless actions of these people who care nothing for the people of Derry.
“We remain united in our determination to building a better and peaceful future for all.”
