Ballymurphy massacre

Ballymurphy massacre
Part of the Troubles
A mural in Belfast commemorating the victims of the Ballymurphy massacre.
Ballymurphy massacre is located in Greater Belfast
Ballymurphy massacre
LocationBelfast, Northern Ireland
Coordinates54°34′30″N 5°58′26″W / 54.575°N 5.974°W / 54.575; -5.974
Date9–11 August 1971
Attack type
Mass shooting
Deaths11
PerpetratorThe Parachute Regiment, British Army

The Ballymurphy massacre was a series of incidents between 9 and 11 August 1971, in which the 1st Battalion, Parachute Regiment of the British Army killed eleven civilians in Ballymurphy, Belfast, Northern Ireland, as part of Operation Demetrius (internment without trial). The shootings were later referred to as Belfast's Bloody Sunday, a reference to the killing of civilians by the same battalion in Derry a few months later, known as Bloody Sunday.[1][2] The 1972 inquests had returned an open verdict on all of the killings,[3] but a 2021 coroner's report found that all those killed had been innocent and that the killings were "without justification".[4]

  1. ^ McDonald, Henry (20 June 2010). "Were Bloody Sunday soldiers involved in 'Ballymurphy massacre'?". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
  2. ^ Moriarty, Gerry (5 November 2018). "Ballymurphy massacre inquests set to open next week". The Irish Times. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
  3. ^ "Ballymurphy inquest findings to be published in Belfast in May". The Irish Times. 26 March 2021. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  4. ^ "Ballymurphy inquest: 10 innocent people killed without justification, coroner finds". Sky News. 11 May 2021. Retrieved 11 May 2021.