Northern Ireland violence fears grow on anniversary of Good Friday Agreement

07 April 2023 , 20:14

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Col Richard Kemp completed eight tours in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland could be hit by worsening violence, 25 years after the Good Friday Peace Agreement was struck.

Veterans who served during the Troubles last night told how they
fear a return to terrorism, and police warned of new dissident threats
over the Easter period.

Col Richard Kemp, who completed eight tours in Northern Ireland from 1979 to 2001, said: “There is tension from people angered by the mishandling of Brexit by the British Government, loyalists wanting to be British, left feeling isolated and betrayed.

“It is very hard to say if they will initiate terrorist acts… but it would be an escalation.

Chief Constable Simon Byrne, of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PA)

“Crucially, there is a real threat now from these dissident republican groups who, when the peace agreement was settled upon, never wanted to stop fighting anyway. They represent a real threat.”

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Chief Constable Simon Byrne, of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, said republican dissident threats could be an attempt to entice officers into gun or bomb attacks.

The PSNI has received intelligence that fresh violence is likely in Derry.

It is bracing for attacks over the weekend or on Monday, when US President Joe Biden is due to visit to mark the 25th anniversary of the pact.

Chris Hughes