Tag: Thursday

THE VISIT TO HYDEBANK PRISON CENTRE THURSDAY 4TH JULY 2013 TO SEE CHRISTINE CONNOR.

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Angela Nelson

I did not write about this visit on Thursday due to the fact that Christine Connor from North Belfast was in court yesterday (Friday) for another bail application and I was hopeful she may have got it due to the fact that she is a totally innocent young woman held on allegations which are ludicrous and gives the distinct sense of a careful set up by the spooks that are operating within our communities. Sadly she was refused on the grounds that she may have access to pipe bombs and other things.

Christine was arrested at the beginning of June and held and questioned for seven days about an alleged attack when a pipe bomb was thrown at Police who were responding to an 999 call, she was also charged with possession of pipe bombs and preparing acts of terrorism.

At the same time a young man from Shrewsbury in England was also arrested and has since been charged with terrorist offences, whilst he does not appear at the court at the same time as Christine he is being associated with her. Christine does not know this young man at all?

The fact is Christine was arrested with nothing in her possession and after lengthy searches of her home and other family members homes nothing was found and there is no forensic evidence linking her to any of these charges.

The police say they can connect her to these charges, and we as Republicans have been down this road before, when allegations are made with nothing to substantiate them yet the person can spend a long time in “Administrative Detention” until the case comes to trial.

I went to see her on Thursday with a friend of hers and we were able to spend two hours with her where she talked me through the prison regime. Christine shares a wing with one other Republican female prisoner (Sharon Rafferty who has been held in “Isolation” for 13 months) until Christine joined her. The two women have become firm friends and are very supportive of each other. They conduct themselves within the prison as strong Republicans who will not be treated as criminals, but that does not mean that the prison system is not constantly trying to harass them and their visitors by giving them prison numbers, (rather than a name) or referring to them as “Dissident terrorists “in the mixed visiting areas within earshot of other visitors.

There is no education facilities available because the two women can already read and write and there are only courses for illiterate prisoners.

There is access to the gym but it is used by ODC’s and no time slot is made available for the two women to use it without mixing with criminals.

The food is inedible so they have to purchase it form the prison shop which is expensive.

During the week they are allowed out of their cells to associate with each other but at weekends they are locked up for 16 hours a day.

These two Republican women are supported by family and close friends but we as Republicans collectively need to be more supportive and that can be done in a very simple way, send them both a letter or a card, let them know we have not forgot about them. If you live close to their families call and offer support or even inquire about their welfare.

Today we had wonderful weather, the sun was shining and as I was driving up the road young women were sitting in “Beer Gardens” having a cold drink basking in the sunshine….

TODAY CHRISTINE CONNOR HAD HER BIRTHDAY,

SHE IS 28 YEARS OF AGE AND HAS BEEN LOCKED UP FOR 16 HOURS TODAY IN A PRISON CELL BECAUSE SHE IS A REPUBLICAN…

ALL I AM ASKING YOU TO DO AT THIS STAGE IS TO WRITE TO CHRISTINE AND SHARON OR SEND A CARD TO SHOW THEM WE CARE…

Seosamh O Bradaigh

Within the last few hours Christine Connor was having a visit for her birthday when it was abruptly cut short by screws claiming the needed the room for other use, upon leaving the Gaol the 2 visitors were met at the entrance by the RUC/PSNI and arrested one of the visitors, he has since been taken to Antrim RUC/PSNI station. The person who they arrested is not a citizen of the country and is in fact an American citizen, the behaviour of the screws and the RUC/PSNI once again has been brought into question when in relation to Republicans more updates will follow

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SHOOTING SCENE UNSECURED FOR THREE HOURS

Officers fled after gunmen opened fire

CONCERN was expressed on Thursday night that police left the scene where gunmen opened fire on officers – unsecured for more than three hours. Residents of the Foxes Glen devolpment in West Belfast could clearly see the remains of a bullet lying on the ground at the back of a car where the aattack took place.

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The scene from Forrest-Gump as he’s running and losses his leg braces RUN FORREST RUN

 

‘ Somebody could have been really hurt here today – Margaret McGrath

Young children were standing close to it, taking phphotographs with their mobile phones. A police patrol made up of one woman and two men, was lured into the area following a bougas report of a burglarly. Six shots were fired into the housing development as children played nearby. None of the officers were injured, although the PSNI spokesman said they had been left ” extremely shaken”. Following the shooting, the police patrol sped from the area and more than three hours later the scene around the car had still been left unsecured. A police Land Rover could be seen parked at  to the devolopment. Sinn Fein councillor Stephen Magennis, who lives in the area, said he heard “one loud bang and about five or six smaller shots”. He described the shootings as “reckless”.”It was obviously attempted murder, not only on obviously the police – I’m glad nobody was hurt – but also residents and children.” Mr Magennis said it was “not acceptable” that the scene had been left ununsecured. “Obviousley, I understand there’s precautions in place for the police coming in to obviously a follow-up operation,” he said.

“They should have been in long ago. You can see there’s still a bullet lying here. It’s being left to the community.” Resident Margaret McGrath, who was at the scene on Thursday holding her 22-month-old ggranddaughter, said she was “disgusted” by what had happened. She described hearing the police car “screech” before it sped out of the area. “There’s so many children here,” she said. “Somebody could have been really hurt today. I mean, we put this all behind us a long time ago and they’re bringing it back.” Police on Thursday night confirmed “following the initial attempt to murder police officers in Foxes Glen, Dunmurry, crews were withdrawn from the area”. “Previous experience has indicated that on many occasions where an attack has been made on police there is often as secondary attack in the same area,” a spokesman said.”As police presence following such an attack can itself constitute a risk to the community on many occasions the decision is taken to reduce that risk by removing police officers from the immediate area.”

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Lisburn area commander Chief Inspector Darrin Jones also hit out at those responsible for the attack. “It is despicable that police officers, who were simply trying to give assistance to a person they believed needed them, should be attacked so ruthlessly,” he said. “Simply put, this was an attempt to murder three young, professional, dedicated people. Three people who were just trying to carry out their duty and serve their community to the best of their ability. “I am appealing directly to anyone  who was in the Foxes Glen area at the time and may be able to help us, to get in touch with police. “I feel extremely grateful that those responsible for this attack failed in their goal to murder. “We could have been dealing with an unimaginable tragedy had the person or persons who pulled the trigger had their evil way. “I ask people in Twinbrook, Dunmurry and further afield to continue to support us and to let the people behind this reckless attack know they do not have support and they will not succeed.” Anyone with information about the attack can contact police on 0845 600 8000 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

With many thanks to : Marie Louise McCrory, Irish News.

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Activists: Dozens dead in new Syria massacre

BEIRUT(AP) — Syria on Thursday denied as “absolutely baseless” claims by opposition groups about a new massacre in the central Hama province in which government forces allegedly killed dozens of people, including women and children.

The exact death toll and circumstances of the overnight killings in Mazraat al-Qubair on the outskirts of Hama were impossible to confirm but the violence is bound to reinforce the growing belief that a peace plan brokered by international envoy Kofi Annan is unraveling as the country spirals toward civil war.

The violence comes on the heels of a horrific massacre in late May in Houla, a cluster of villages in the central Homs province, which left over 100 dead including many children and women gunned down in their homes. U.N. investigators blamed pro-government gunmen for at least some of the killings but the Syrian regime denied responsibility and blamed rebels for the deaths. The Houla massacre triggered international outrage and a coordinated expulsion of Syrian diplomats from world capitals.

Syria on Thursday said “an armed terrorist group committed an appalling crime” in Mazraat al-Qubair, killing nine women and children. A government statement published on the state-run news agency SANA said that after the crime, residents there appealed on Syrian authorities in Hama to intervene to protect them, adding that competent authorities headed to the farm and stormed a hideout of the group and clashed with them.

Clashes resulted in the killing of all members of the group. Two security agents were killed and five others wounded, it said.

The statement said the killings were meant to put pressure on the Syrian regime ahead of the U.N. Security Council meeting.

British Prime Minister David Cameron urged concerted action from the international community against Syrian President Bashar Assad‘s regime following the latest reports. He said Thursday that if the reports of the “brutal and sickening attack” are true, it adds further proof that the Assad regime is “completely illegitimate and cannot stand.”

Speaking during a visit to Norway, Cameron insisted more must be done to isolate Assad’s regime and show that “the whole world” wants to see political transition in Syria and condemns “absolutely” the Syrian regime.

The exact circumstances of the violence in Hama were impossible to independently confirm.

Al-Qubair is a small farm in the overwhelmingly Sunni village of Maarzaf around 20 kilometers (12 miles) west of the city of Hama with around 30 homes and around 160 inhabitants. Attempts to reach eyewitnesses and residents of the area were unsuccessful Thursday, making the verification of what went on extremely difficult. The Syrian government keeps tight restrictions on journalists.

Activists said the Sunni village is surrounded by a string of Alawite villages. Alawites are an offshoot of Shiite Islam and Assad is a member of the sect.

The Britain-based Observatory for Human Rights said Thursday that “dozens” of people were killed overnight in Mazraat al-Qubair but Rami Abdul-Rahman, the director of the group which relies on a network of activists on the ground, said he was still documenting names of the dead. He said the circumstances of the killings were still unclear and called on U.N. observers to visit the area immediately.

The Local Coordination Committees group gave a far higher death toll, saying more than 78 people were killed, including many women and children. It says pro-government militiamen known as shabiha first shelled the farming area and then went in and killed the residents there. It says some of the dead were stabbed to death while other bodies were burned.

Syria’s main opposition group in exile, the Syrian National Council, also said 78 people were killed. It said 35 of them were from the same Al-Yatim family and more than half of them women and children. It said the militiamen converged on Qubair from neighboring pro-regime villages. It said some of the dead were killed execution-style, others were slain with knives.

“Women and children were burned inside their homes in al-Qubair,” said Mousab Alhamadee, an activist based in the central province of Hama.

WITH MANY THANKS TO : By ZEINA KARAM, Associated Press

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SLAUGHTER IN SYRIA

FRESH scenes of the horrific slaughter of innocent civilians in Syria have emerged as violence in the Middle Eastern country spirals out of control.The images show tearful children sobbing over the bloodied bodies of relatives killed in another massacre carried out by forces loyal to President Bashar Assad. In the most recent atrocity it was claimed that pro-regime militia killed 12 factory workers on Thursday after forcing them off a bus in the village of Qusair. 7277050144_cec7c42f7e_b

Video footage released by Assad’s opponents showed the disfigured bodies of at least a dozen victims who were shot in the head or stomach at close range. It follows the slaughter of more than 100 civilians, including 49 children, in Houla last week. Syria’s most important ally, Russia, has again refused to support moves that could lead to foreign intervention.

Last Thursday, a Syrian goverernment investigation into the killings blamed armed rebel groups seeking to trigger foreign military interventon. The claim was dismissed by US permanent representative to the UN, Susan Rice, as a ” BLATANT LIE ” !

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Suspicious object sparks Newry alert

A suspicious object has been discovered on a road close to Newry.

Suspicious object sparks Newry alert

The object was uncovered close to the A1 on Thursday. (© UTV)

The army bomb squad are examining the object which was found on the A1 close to the Forkhill turn off on Friday.

Police are also at the scene of the security alert.

WITH MANY THANKS TO : UTV News NI.

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Bomb squad at Antrim alert

A local resident found a suspicious object which has sparked a security alert in Antrim.

Bomb squad at Antrim alert
Cordens are in place at the scecne of the alert in Antrim
 

The suspect device was found in Oakdale Manor in the town at around 10.20am on Thursday.

Army bomb experts are at the scene and a police spokesperson said a small number of homes have been evacuated.

 

WITH MANY THANKS TO : UTV News

Justice for Marian Price ( Please share )

Eddie Travers

A public meeting on the ongoing incarceration and torture of Marian Price.
This will take place on
Thursday 8th March
… 7.30pm
the Conway Education Centre, Conway Mill 5/7 Conway Street Falls Road Belfst BT13 2DE

A group of women have recently united here in Belfast as have people in other areas to highlight the ongoing incarceration and torture of Marian Price. We are writing to groups of women, politicians, the clergy, human rights groups and the trade union movement requesting they become involved in the campaign. A broad spectrum of people have become involved as they too see the treatment of Marian Price as a violation of human rights and an affront to justice.

This public meeting scheduled for the 8th of March here in Belfast, is also (International Women’s day). The meeting will give the public the opportunity to hear of this disgraceful situation first hand.

POSTED ON BEHALF OF : Eddie Travers

Scotland 32csm – Don’t let Khader Adnan Die Vigil

Scotland 32csm - Don't let Khader Adnan Die Vigil

Posted On Behalf Of : Public event · By Scotland Csm
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