Summary
The Saville Inquiry was the investigation set up to examine the tragic actions that occurred on 30 January 1972 in Londonderry, Northern Ireland.
On the day named Bloody Sunday, 13 people died after members of the British Army's Parachute Regiment opened fire on civil rights marchers in the Bogside area.
‘Report of The Bloody Sunday Inquiry' (HC 29-I - HC 29-X, Volumes 1-10) outlines the background to Bloody Sunday and then describes the events of the day:
- the civil rights march;
- the outbreak of rioting in William Street;
- early firing by the Army wounding two persons;
- a shot fired by a member of the Official IRA;
- the launch of the arrest operation by Support Company of the 1st Battalion, The Parachute Regiment (1 PARA); and
- subsequent events at various locations in the Bogside.
The report found that soldiers of 1 PARA lost their self-control in the mistaken belief that republican paramilitaries were responding in force to their arrival. This led to them opening fire on crowds present at a civil rights demonstration, causing the deaths of 13 unarmed marchers and injury to 14 bystanders.
Bloody Sunday strengthened the IRA, increased nationalist resentment and hostility towards the Army and intensified the violent conflict of the years that followed.
It was a tragedy for the bereaved and wounded and a catastrophe for the people of Northern Ireland.
The report is 5000 words and made up of ten volumes.
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