Title : Journalist, 29, is shot dead in ‘terrorist incident’ in Londonderry
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Journalist, 29, is shot dead in ‘terrorist incident’ in Londonderry
Pictured: Female journalist, 29, shot dead 'in terrorist incident by dissident republicans' on a night of violent rioting in Londonderry
- Female journalist Lyra McKee, 29, was shot dead in Creggan, Londonderry, last night while covering riots
- Suspected dissident republican terrorist opened fire indiscriminately and victim believed hit by stray bullet
- Friends who confirmed her death to MailOnline this morning described the woman as 'utterly irreplaceable'
- Her killing spread a wave of revulsion across Northern Ireland with politicians on all sides condemning it
- The reporter headed to Creggan after rioting broke out following police raids on homes in the area yesterday
A female journalist was shot dead while covering a riot in Londonderry last night in a suspected attack by dissident republicans.
Lyra McKee, 29, is believed to have been hit by a stray bullet after a gunman opened fire indiscriminately at around 11pm in what is being investigated as a 'terrorist incident'.
Police revealed this morning that it believes the New IRA was 'most likely' behind the killing, calling Ms McKee a 'completely innocent bystander'.
Moments before her death, Ms McKee had posted an image from the scene of the riots on Twitter showing smoke rising into the air above emergency service vehicles, along with the caption: 'Derry tonight. Absolute madness.'
Shocking footage posted to social media shows a masked man taking cover near the rioters while holding a handgun, before firing two shots. Seconds later screams are heard coming from the other end of the road.
Speaking about the shock of Ms McKee's death, close friend Matthew Hughes, 27, told MailOnline: 'The loss her friends feel is unquantifiable. Unfathomable. She is utterly irreplaceable.'
Assistant chief constable Mark Hamilton said more than 50 petrol bombs were thrown at police during the riots as he described the killing as 'not only a murder of a young woman, it is an attack again on the people of this city'.
Lyra McKee, 29, (shown left,at the wedding of close friend Matthew Hughes) is believed to have been hit by a stray bullet after a gunman opened fire indiscriminately at around 11pm
Moments before her death, Ms McKee had posted an image from the scene of the riots on Twitter showing smoke rising into the air above emergency service vehicles, along with the caption: 'Derry tonight. Absolute madness'
A car was torched by the mob as violence erupted on the streets of Londonderry on Thursday ahead of the Easter Weekend
A devastated Mr Hughes, 27, told MailOnline: 'It was just after midnight, my wife got a call from Lyra's partner. It was probably the one of the worst phone calls I've ever overheard in my life.
'I heard the word shot, and that she was dead. Lyra was one of my best friends, she was a groomswoman at my wedding - she helped me tie my tie before the wedding.
'We'd traveled abroad together, we were very very close friends.'
He said he had known Ms McKee for five years and understood his friend had been killed by a stray bullet, according to Ms McKee's partner, who was at the scene.
Mr Hughes paid tribute to his friend, saying: 'Lyra was such a brilliant, kind, compassionate person, and so unbelievably good; as a journalist, as a storyteller, as a person.
'If she saw a homeless person on the street she would go and buy them a cup of tea and a sandwich. She was the kindest, brightest, most determined person.
'She was a great investigative reporter, and she was at this inflection point in her career - she was going to go to the next level, she was so bright and so accomplished.'
Ms McKee was an editor for California-based news site Mediagazer and had extensively covered the Troubles in Northern Ireland, leading to Forbes naming her as one of its 30 under 30 in the media in 2016.
She first rose to prominence in 2014 after a blog post called 'Letter to my 14-year-old self' in which she spoke about the struggle of growing up gay in Belfast.
Last year, she released her first novella called Angels With Blue Faces, a non-fiction novella about the murder of a reverend during the Northern Irish conflict, with her second book The Lost Boys scheduled for release in 2020.
In a forward to her first book, she said her share of the sale proceeds would 'go to Paper Trail, a charity that helps survivors of the conflict – regardless of religion, political belief, or other affiliations'.
She added: 'It empowers victims by helping them ask questions and obtain answers about what was often the most traumatic experience of their lives.
'Your money will help Paper Trail continue to do this, as Northern Ireland continues to recover from the devastation left by 30 years of war.'
In the foreword, she spoke of her country as 'a beautiful tragedy, strangled by the chains of its past and its present'.
'It's a place full of darkness and mysteries,' she added, 'It's also my home. Sometimes, I love it and hate it in equal measure.'
She had headed to the city's Creggan district after riots erupted following police raids on a number of homes yesterday. Several vehicles were hijacked and set alight earlier in the incident before the gunshots were heard.
Police said shots were fired and petrol bombs were thrown as people clashed with police after homes were raided in the area
Police revealed this morning that they believe the attack was carried out by 'violent dissident republicans', calling Ms McKee a 'completely innocent bystander'
Another reporter, Leona O'Neill, said she was standing next to the woman who was hit. She Tweeted: 'I was standing beside this young woman when she fell beside a police Land Rover tonight in Creggan.
'I called an ambulance for her but police put her in the back of their vehicle and rushed her to hospital where she died. Just 29 years old. Sick to my stomach tonight.'
And local political candidate Emmet Doyle said: 'A masked figure stopped at the bottom of the road and fired shots up towards the Land Rovers.
'We all turned and ran, I stopped beside the Land Rover nearer the top of the street and a girl beside me dropped to the ground.'
Speaking at a press conference at Strand Road PSNI station in Londonderry, Assistant Chief Constable for District Policing Mark Hamilton said journalist Ms McKee was murdered by dissident republicans.
He said police had been carrying out a search operation in the Creggan area of Derry when a situation developed during which more than 50 petrol bombs were thrown at police and two cars hijacked and set on fire.
'Unfortunately, at 11pm last night, a gunman appeared and fired a number of shots towards police and a young woman, Lyra McKee, 29 years old, was wounded,' she said.
'She was taken away in a police landrover to Altnagelvin Hospital but unfortunately she has died there. We have now launched a murder inquiry here in the city.
Mr Hughes said he had known Ms McKee (pictured) for five years and understood his friend had been killed by a stray bullet, according to Ms McKee's partner, who was at the scene
'Can I say also, I want to pass my deepest sympathies to the family of Ms McKee, 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.
'I stood here in January and we talked about the bomb and the act of violence against this city, and yet again we see another act of violence in this city which has had horrendous consequences and which will affect people for many, many years.
'I would appeal to people, particularly this Easter weekend, to stay calm, I would appeal to people who are intent on violence to draw back, I would appeal to people with influence to use your influence and make sure this is peaceful weekend. Not only this weekend but going forward in this city.
'These acts of violence are bringing nothing to this city, all they are doing is bringing misery to one family, but also particularly to this city and also to our broader province.'
Ann Travers, whose sister Mary was murdered by the IRA in 1984, said Ms McKee was a 'kind, gentle, witty and stubborn soul'.
'I have just heard, that my lovely friend Lyra was murdered tonight in Derry. I just can't believe, that this witty, clever human being has been taken... Feel sick.'
Fellow journalist Peter McGuire said Ms McKee was a 'gifted writer, a kind person and SO generous with her time and knowledge'.
'So young - horrific & heartbreaking news from Derry tonight,' he tweeted.
Seamus Dooley, Irish secretary of the National Union of Journalists, wrote: 'Shocked by news that woman shot dead in Derry last night has been named locally as @NUJofficial Lyra McKee.
'We are shocked by killing of a journalist of courage, style and integrity. Sympathy to her partner, family and many friends.'
Gunfire erupted during the clashes as police moved in to assist and the female victim was struck by a stray bullet, witness said
Lilly Dancyger, a New York-based editor at digital publication Narratively, said Ms McKee was 'dedicated to covering the lasting trauma & violence of the Troubles'.
'Devastating to hear she was killed tonight by that same violence,' she tweeted.
Ms Dancyger shared an article written by Ms McKee about the families of Troubles victims.
'I was Lyra's editor on this story, and it was an honour. Sharing her work now is all I can think to do,' she said.
Writer Brooke Magnanti, whose blogs were made into TV hit Secret Diary Of A Call Girl, said she was 'stunned' by the news.
She tweeted: 'I only knew her from online and a phone conversations after we were introduced by @GlasgaeLauraLee; she struck me as a thoughtful journalist unafraid to challenge her own beliefs. Rare and precious. Deepest condolences to family and friends.'
The unrest comes ahead of the Easter weekend where republicans mark the anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising, a time when dissidents are traditionally active.
Politicians have widely condemned the killing. Sinn Fein deputy leader Michelle O'Neill said the killing in Derry was a 'senseless loss of life'.
She said: 'I am shocked and saddened at the tragic news that a young woman has been shot dead by so-called dissidents in the Creggan estate tonight.
A hijacked car explodes after being set on fire in Creggan, Londonderry, late on Thursday, in the rioting before the gunfire
'The murder of this young woman is a human tragedy for her family, but it is also an attack on all the people of this community, an attack on our peace process and an attack on the Good Friday Agreement.
'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.'
DUP leader Arlene Foster said that news of the death was 'heartbreaking' and that it was a 'senseless act'.
'Those who brought guns onto our streets in the 70s, 80 and 90s were wrong. It is equally wrong in 2019. No one wants to go back,' she said.
Mark H Durkan, SDLP MLA for Foyle, said he was left 'heartbroken and angry' by the killing. 'Just leaving Creggan, heartbroken and angry at the senseless loss of a young life,' he tweeted.
'Violence only creates victims, that's all it ever has done. The thoughts and prayers of our city are with the young woman's family and friends, may she rest in peace.'
Assistant chief constable Mark Hamilton, from the Police Service of Northern Ireland, said a murder inquiry had been launched after the death.
Police 'appealed for calm' in the wake of the violent flare-up on Thursday evening after the female journalist was murdered
He said: 'Sadly I can confirm that following shots being fired tonight in Creggan, a 29-year-old woman has been killed.
'We are treating this as a terrorist incident and we have launched a murder inquiry.'
PSNI officers were searching houses in the Creggan area when the disorder broke out. Bricks, bottles and fireworks were hurled at police officers and a car and a van were seen burned out in the area.
The trouble comes after the announcement on Monday that 'Soldier B' will be prosecuted for the murder of 15-year-old Daniel Hegarty in the Creggan area in July 1972.
He will also be prosecuted on a second charge of wounding with intent.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland wrote on Twitter: 'Police are appealing for calm after a number of shots have been fired and petrol bombs thrown in the Creggan area of Derry.
Gary Middleton, DUP member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for Foyle, tweeted: 'Disgraceful scenes of violence in the Creggan estate tonight.
'PSNI and members of the public being put in danger by unrepresentative thugs intent on destroying communities.'
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