TERRORIST MURDERS AT HIGHEST LEVEL SINCE OMAGH
Terrorist murders at highest level since Omagh
By Martin Breen
TERRORIST murders in Northern Ireland are at their highest since the year of the Omagh bombing, it emerged today.
Ulster Unionist MP Ken Maginnis urged caution on policing reforms after being told 17 people have been killed by paramilitaries already this year compared to seven for the whole of 1999. Loyalist paramilitaries are believed to have killed 13 people and republicans four.
Of those killed this year, 12 died as a result of feuding between the UVF and LVF or UVF and UDA.
The first killing of the year clearly attributed to paramilitaries was the murder of UVF suspect Richard Jameson in Portadown on January 10.
Security forces have linked the Loyalist Volunteer Force to that killing. The stabbings of teenagers David McIlwaine and Andrew Robb a month later were blamed on the UVF despite its denials. The UDA is suspected of five of the feud-related murders and the UVF has been linked to six.
The UDA/UFF has also been accused of murdering Catholic builder Gary Moore in Monkstown last week.
On the other hand republicans have been linked with four killings this year including that of Protestant taxi driver Trevor Kell.
The Provisional IRA is suspected of the drugs related murders of Ed McCoy in Dunmurry, Patrick Quinn in Magherafelt and Real IRA member Joseph O'Connor in west Belfast. Last year loyalists and republicans were also linked to murders.
While loyalist victims included Lurgan solicitor Rosemary Nelson and leading loyalist Frankie Curry the IRA was accused of murdering Charles Bennett and drug dealers such as Brendan 'Speedy' Fegan.
In 1998 the death toll was highest since the 1994 ceasefires with 29 people being murdered in the Real IRA's Omagh bomb.
A total of 55 people were killed by paramilitaries that year which also witnessed loyalist reprisals for the murder of LVF leader Billy Wright.
Ulster Unionist security spokesman Ken Maginnis expressed alarm that "massive" changes to policing could go ahead at a time when 17 people had been murdered by paramilitaries.
He said today: "It has been a very sad year in so far as the pain that many people have had to endure.
"It is a time for government to withstand the unreasonable clamour for massive changes in policing at a time when Mafia sub-culture is increasing and people are still being killed on the streets.
"I have great reservations about some of the changes to the police and particularly at the speed of the changes that are envisaged . There must be a high degree of correlation between a change and the level of the terrorist threat."
By Martin Breen
TERRORIST murders in Northern Ireland are at their highest since the year of the Omagh bombing, it emerged today.
Ulster Unionist MP Ken Maginnis urged caution on policing reforms after being told 17 people have been killed by paramilitaries already this year compared to seven for the whole of 1999. Loyalist paramilitaries are believed to have killed 13 people and republicans four.
Of those killed this year, 12 died as a result of feuding between the UVF and LVF or UVF and UDA.
The first killing of the year clearly attributed to paramilitaries was the murder of UVF suspect Richard Jameson in Portadown on January 10.
Security forces have linked the Loyalist Volunteer Force to that killing. The stabbings of teenagers David McIlwaine and Andrew Robb a month later were blamed on the UVF despite its denials. The UDA is suspected of five of the feud-related murders and the UVF has been linked to six.
The UDA/UFF has also been accused of murdering Catholic builder Gary Moore in Monkstown last week.
On the other hand republicans have been linked with four killings this year including that of Protestant taxi driver Trevor Kell.
The Provisional IRA is suspected of the drugs related murders of Ed McCoy in Dunmurry, Patrick Quinn in Magherafelt and Real IRA member Joseph O'Connor in west Belfast. Last year loyalists and republicans were also linked to murders.
While loyalist victims included Lurgan solicitor Rosemary Nelson and leading loyalist Frankie Curry the IRA was accused of murdering Charles Bennett and drug dealers such as Brendan 'Speedy' Fegan.
In 1998 the death toll was highest since the 1994 ceasefires with 29 people being murdered in the Real IRA's Omagh bomb.
A total of 55 people were killed by paramilitaries that year which also witnessed loyalist reprisals for the murder of LVF leader Billy Wright.
Ulster Unionist security spokesman Ken Maginnis expressed alarm that "massive" changes to policing could go ahead at a time when 17 people had been murdered by paramilitaries.
He said today: "It has been a very sad year in so far as the pain that many people have had to endure.
"It is a time for government to withstand the unreasonable clamour for massive changes in policing at a time when Mafia sub-culture is increasing and people are still being killed on the streets.
"I have great reservations about some of the changes to the police and particularly at the speed of the changes that are envisaged . There must be a high degree of correlation between a change and the level of the terrorist threat."
Further Information
Publisher: BELFAST TELEGRAPH
Ref: BT/0766
Published Date: 11-Dec-00
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