Belfast: The New IRA paramilitary group claimed responsibility for the murder of 29-year-old journalist Lyra McKee in Londonderry and apologized to her family and friends, the media reported on Tuesday.
In a statement to the Irish News, the New IRA said that the journalist “was tragically killed while standing beside enemy forces”, in reference to the police.
Mckee, who was not working at the time of the incident, was shot in the head by a masked gunman who fired at police officers in the Creggan area of Londonderry during a wave of riots last Thursday.
“The IRA offer our full and sincere apologies to the partner, family and friends of Lyra McKee for her death,” the paramilitary group said in a statement cited by Efe news.
In published images, the figure of the man could be seen starting a fire at point-blank range at a police off-road vehicle. McKee was standing near the vehicle with other journalists and was taking pictures with her mobile phone.
A second man, who could be an accomplice, was also seen picking something up from the ground, and then escaping.
The detective in charge of the murder investigation, Jason Murphy, earlier warned of the emergence of a “new breed of terrorist” in Northern Ireland.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) treated the incident as an “act of terrorism”, allegedly perpetrated by Republican dissidents, linked to the New IRA, a formation which feeds on armed groups of Irish nationalist militants opposed to the peace process.
The PSNI believes that the riots generated by violent youths were a response to the raids which the agents had previously carried out in several properties in that area. They were in search of weapons, to dismantle an alleged plot against the government which was planned for this weekend.
Lyra McKee was the editor of California-based news site Mediagazer, which specializes in media news.
She was also an important and popular figure in the gay community of Northern Ireland, who saw her as a role model and a tireless defender of the rights of her group.
