A former British soldier will be prosecuted for two murders in the 'Bloody ...
LONDONDERRY, Northern Ireland - A former British soldier will be prosecuted for two murders in the “Bloody Sunday” killings of 13 unarmed Catholic civil rights marchers in Londonderry by British paratroopers in 1972 - one of the most notorious incidents of the Northern Ireland conflict.
Soldiers from the elite Parachute Regiment opened fire on Sunday, Jan. 30, 1972, during an unauthorized march in the Bogside, a nationalist area of Londonderry. They killed 13 people and wounded 14 others, one of whom died later. The prosecutor announced on Thursday that there was sufficient evidence to prosecute “Soldier F” for the murder of James Wray and William McKinney and for the attempted murders of Joseph Friel, Michael Quinn, Joe Mahon and Patrick O’Donnell.
“We would like to remind everyone that no prosecution or if it comes to it no conviction does not mean not guilty, it does not mean that no crime was committed, it does not mean that those soldiers acted in a dignified and appropriate way,” said Mickey McKinney, brother to one of the victims. The British government said it would provide full legal support to the soldier who will face prosecution.
The Bloody Sunday killings caused widespread anger at the time - not least in the United States, where support for the Irish Republican cause runs high - and nearly 50 years later the incident remains highly emotive.
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