Prosecutors in Northern Ireland have said that one former British soldier will face charges over the 1972 Bloody Sunday massacre.
Fourteen people were fatally injured after British soldiers opened fire on a crowd following a civil rights march in Derry on January 30th 1972.
A further 15 people were wounded.
Northern Ireland’s Public Prosecution Service (NIPPS) has been examining whether 17 British soldiers and two Official IRA suspects will face charges.
An 18th soldier who was interviewed by police has since died.
The charges under consideration included murder, attempted murder and causing grievous bodily injury with intent to endanger life.
This morning the NIPPS announced that one former soldier would face charges.
It also announced that two former members of the Official IRA will not face charges.
History says,
Don’t hope
On this side of the grave.
But then,
once in a lifetime ,
The longed-for tidal wave
Of justice can rise up
And hope and history rhyme.
- Seamus Heaney 🕊#WeWillRememberThem #BloodySunday pic.twitter.com/UrwxHVshmH— Dr. Jennifer Cassidy (@OxfordDiplomat) March 14, 2019
Bloody Sunday
Police in the North opened an investigation into the killings after the 2010 Saville Report found that ‘on balance,’ British troops fired the first shots on Bloody Sunday without issuing a warning.
The report exonerated all of the victims of any wrongdoing and found that none of the people who were shot by British soldiers were armed.
Following the report, UK Prime Minister David Cameron apologised on behalf of the UK for the 'unjustified and unjustifiable' events.
John & Eileen of the Ballymurphy Families here in Derry this morning in solidarity with the Bloody Sunday Families. We hope what happens today will be a step forward for all families pic.twitter.com/kpz2Gs0ZjG
— Michelle O’Neill (@moneillsf) March 14, 2019
Justice
Kate Nash's brother William was shot dead and her father wounded on Bloody Sunday. Her brother was just 19 years old.
She said: "I think of my brother every single day. I can still see his smiling face that day when he left home.
"Justice matters to anybody. If you have a family member and something like that happens to them... your brother, your poor dead brother is treated like he never existed, that he wasn't worth justice, what every one of us are entitled to."
Since the inquiry, the PSNI has passed two complex investigation files - including 668 witness statements, numerous physical exhibits such as photographs, video and audio recordings, and a total of 125,000 pages of material – to the Northern Ireland Public Prosecution Service.
The PPS is announcing what action it plans to take this morning.
We shall overcome... solidarity with the Bloody Sunday families. #BloodySunday pic.twitter.com/u6MsYakWBM
— Sinn Féin (@sinnfeinireland) March 14, 2019
