Bonfire could cut supply to two Belfast City Hospitals
Andrew Madden, Belfast Telegraph, July 9th, 2025
There have been fresh calls for action at a south Belfast bonfire site after fears emerged that the pyre could pose a risk to the power supply to the City Hospital.
The bonfire in the Donegall Road area, which has already caused controversy due to concerns around suspected asbestos nearby, is close to an electricity substation.
Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE) has expressed concerns the proximity of the bonfire to the substation is posing a risk to “critical infrastructure and power outages”.
The Belfast Trust said it is working to mitigate any impact on patient care and senior engineers will remain on site at City Hospital during the Eleventh night.
Alliance Party MLA Paula Bradshaw said the situation is “not acceptable”, while the SDLP’s Matthew O’Toole said it “beggars belief”.
In a statement, NIE said it is “aware of the Donegal Road bonfire and have met with relevant stakeholders to express our concerns over the bonfire’s proximity to the substation causing potential risk to critical infrastructure and power outages.”
A spokesperson added: “Mitigations have been put in place, including turning off the transformers adjacent to the bonfire, building scaffolding with metal sheeting around the transformers and placing steel plates on open cable ducts to reduce the risk of fire and damage.
“Whilst these mitigations are in place, there will be a reduction in security of supply for the area.
“We would remind the public that flames near to power lines and electricity substations pose serious risk to everyone’s safety and wellbeing.”
A Belfast Trust spokesperson said it is “working to mitigate any impact on patient care or treatment, and has notified NIE of concerns around any potential outage.”
The Trust said: “Senior engineers will remain on site at Belfast City Hospital during the eleventh night.
“Discussions are ongoing with all relevant agencies.”
In recent weeks concerns have also been raised about the presence of hazardous asbestos material just yards from the bonfire.
Stormont’s Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs said on Monday said that the NI Environment Agency remains in “ongoing contact” with Belfast City Council over the issues at the bonfire site, which is on private land.
"The Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) is working with Belfast City Council to address the issues on the Broadway Industrial Estate, even though it is primarily the responsibility of the landowner,” said a spokesperson.
"Following an assessment of the site, NIEA has alongside Belfast City Council been carrying out additional mitigating measures over the past week including the further covering of the asbestos containing material, the use of fire-retardant material and the erection of additional fencing.
"Staff from the Environmental Crime Unit within NIEA remain in ongoing contact with the council and their enforcement investigation continues in relation to the site.”
Buck Passing
Matthew O’Toole said the situation “beggars belief” and “begs questions about basic leadership and accountability”.
"For weeks a massive pile of asbestos has been left next to a bonfire with a clear deadline for when it needed to be removed and certain knowledge of the public health risk,” he said.
"But nothing was done apart from buck-passing between the council and the NIEA. Now we learn of the added risk to power supply. The public are left wondering about basic governance in this place.
“This represents a pathetic failure of leadership and [DAERA] Minister Muir needs to step up and address this issue decisively."
Paula Bradshaw said her party supports the display of culture when it is “safe, legal and respectful”, but to have a bonfire so close to an electric substation, particularly that of serving a hospital, is “not acceptable”.
“I urge the bonfire builders to remove this bonfire at this site, to reduce any potential risk.”
The Green Party also called on the pyre to be removed.
“Cultural expression should never endanger life or liberty and we remain concerned about the risk posed by the bonfire at the Broadway Industrial Estate from asbestos and to the electricity substation,” a spokesperson said.
"We believe that it is not safe and poses a substantial public health risk and the site needs to be cleared.
“It is worth noting that Belfast City Council has worked for years on the issue of bonfires within its boundaries, without help or guidance from the Executive or it's arms length bodies, and beyond it's core statutory remit. Ultimately, we need leadership from the Executive on this issue.”
UPDATE: Outrage as 'migrant boat’ placed on top of loyalist bonfire
Andrew Madden, Belfast Telegraph, July 9th, 2025
There has been outrage after a ‘migrant boat’ filled with mannequins appeared on top of a bonfire in Co Tyrone.
The pyre in the village of Moygashel, which has caused controversy over the years, has also been festooned with anti-immigration placards.
One sign says “stop the boats”, while another reads “veterans before refugees”.
The mannequins in the boat all have dark skin and are wearing life jackets.
Last year there was criticism after a mock-up of a PSNI vehicle was placed on top of the bonfire.
Many have hit out at the latest stunt, branding it “racist”, while the PSNI has said it is “aware of an item placed on a bonfire at the Moygashel area” and “enquiries are continuing”.
Patrick Corrigan, Amnesty International's Northern Ireland director, described the bonfire as a "vile, dehumanising act that fuels hatred and racism".
"It cruelly mocks the suffering of people who risk everything to flee war, persecution, and hardship in search of safety,” he said.
"Beyond being morally reprehensible, it incites hostility toward already marginalised and vulnerable communities.
"Amnesty International urges the authorities to ensure its immediate removal and calls on the PSNI to investigate and hold those responsible to account.
"A clear and unequivocal message must be sent that xenophobia and incitement to hatred have no place in our society."
A spokesperson for the United Against Racism campaign group said the display is particularly concerning following the racist rioting in Ballymena and elsewhere across Northern Ireland last month, which forced more than a dozen foreign national families from their homes.
"In a context of widespread violence against migrants and their homes, the burning of effigies is a precursor to the burning of people,” the spokesperson said.
“Given recent events in Ballymena, and our own recent history, we must be alive to the real dangers that such acts carry.
‘Attempt to intimidate people fleeing war and persecution’
"This is an absolutely shocking attempt to intimidate people who are fleeing war, poverty and persecution. It deserves unreserved and unequivocal condemnation, and United Against Racism calls on political representatives to show leadership to ensure the effigy is removed.”
SDLP leader Claire Hanna called for leadership over bonfires, referencing the Moygashel pyre and a bonfire in south Belfast that has sparked fears over nearby asbestos and the potential to cause power outages at hospitals.
Ms Hanna said her party “supports the right of people to mark traditions in a safe and respectful way”, but that “cannot mean turning a blind eye to very real and serious concerns around public safety and community cohesion”.
“There is nothing cultural or traditional about exposing people to asbestos, endangering critical infrastructure or fuelling racial hatred through effigies demonising immigrants,” she said.
Council refuses to say whether approval has been granted for ‘festival’ and funfair at bonfire site.
The Belfast South and Mid Down MP said progress in managing bonfires in recent years is being “undermined by a lack of leadership and by a small number of self-appointed figures who seek to drag communities backwards and who seem to thrive on confrontation and media engagement.”
Sinn Fein MLA Colm Gildernew also voiced his concerns.
“This is an absolutely disgusting act, fuelled by sickening racist and far-right attitudes,” he said.
“This is a clear incitement to hatred and must be removed immediately.
“Those who come to our island to make it their home are not the enemy. They are our friends, our neighbours, and are welcomed, cherished and valued by the vast majority of people here.
“Political leaders in this area must step up, call for the removal of these offensive materials and make it clear they do not support such vile, deplorable views.”
Alliance Party councillor for the area, Eddie Roofe, also called for the display to be taken down.
“The placing of this racist model on top of the bonfire is despicable and must be removed immediately,” he said.
Blatant act of hatred
“It is nothing but a blatant act of racism and hatred, and cannot be excused as a celebration of culture.
“Those responsible only seek to incite fear and spread far-right beliefs and do not represent the community as a whole.
“Every year, we see incidents of hate and intimidation associated with bonfires, and this behaviour is entirely unacceptable. While Alliance supports everyone's right to celebrate their culture and traditions, these celebrations must be conducted safely and respectfully.
“They should never come at the expense of another person.
“I urge everyone to speak out against these actions, and I hope to see these inappropriate displays taken down as soon as possible. If we are to move forward as a society, we must all begin to show respect for one another.”
Others have defended the Moygashel bonfire, with loyalist activist Jamie Bryson describing it as “artistic expression”.
The depiction of migrants in a boat on top of the pyre follows successive nights of racist violence across Northern Ireland last month, which saw dozens of homes attacked and more than 60 PSNI officers injured.
Due to the violence, the Northern Ireland Housing Executive had to provide emergency accommodation to 18 families.
Boutcher urged to take UVF flags action - UVF flags and tributes ‘are triggering PTSD’
Connla Young, Irish News, July 9th, 2025
THE daughter of a loyalist murder victim has urged Chief Constable Jon Boutcher to order the removal of UVF flags from a notorious loyalist bonfire in Co Tyrone.
Denise Mullen made the call after paramilitary-linked flags were recently placed on the pyre in Moygashel, near Dungannon.
Ms Mullen’s father, SDLP member Denis Mullen, was shot dead by the Glenanne Gang near Moy, Co Tyrone, in September 1975.
The group, which included members of the RUC, UDR and UVF, is believed to have been responsible for around 125 murders, the majority of which were innocent Catholics.
A tribute to loyalist killer Wesley Somerville, a member of the Glenanne Gang, has also been hung from a lamppost in the village.
Somerville died along with fellow loyalist Harris Boyle, both members of the UDR, as they placed a bomb on a minibus carrying the Miami Showband near Banbridge, Co Down on July 31 1975.
Three members of the band also died in the attack.
Another banner put up in the village pays homage to the UDR.
Several flags glorifying the UVF have been put up around the village ahead of this week’s bonfire event.
Two UVF-themed flags and one supporting the paramilitary group’s youth wing, the Young Citizen Volunteers, have been hoisted from the bonfire.
One of the UVF flags includes an image of two armed and masked men along with the words ‘Mid Ulster Brigade’ and a UVF crest.
PSNI ‘no longer welsome’
In the wake of last month’s racist rioting, loyalists in Moygashel said the PSNI is no longer welcome in the area amid claims of “two-tier” policing.
A replica police car was placed on an Eleventh Night bonfire in the village last July.
While display of paramilitary-linked murals have reduced in nationalist districts since the peace process, images of armed men and other paramilitary displays are still common in some loyalist areas.
Every year flags are put up in loyalist and mixed districts paying tribute to loyalist paramilitary groups, including the UVF and UDA.
In March this year Mr Boutcher revealed plans to remove paramilitary “displays” – likely to include murals and flags – and confirmed contact with the British government’s Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, Jonathan Hall KC, about the move.
Ms Mullen, a former Aontú and SDLP councillor, said Mr Boutcher now needs to tackle paramilitary displays.
“It’s time Jon Boutcher took some action,” she said.
A flag depicting UVF gunmen on the bonfire in Moygashel, Co Tyrone
“ It’s time Jon Boutcher took some action. Action speaks louder than words. When you see some of the UVF tributes, it triggers your complex PTSD. Victims and survivors are being brushed under the carpet
“Action speaks louder than words.”
Retraumatising victims
Ms Mullen said the sight of loyalist flags and emblems can retraumatise victims.
“When you see some of the UVF tributes, it triggers your complex PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder).
“Victims and survivors are being brushed under the carpet.
“Without addressing victims and survivors’ issues, we are not going to have harmony.”
Ms Mullen added that she has “yet to come across in any area a flag saying ‘IRA’”.
A PSNI spokesman said: “Police are aware of flags being flown in the vicinity of a bonfire in Moygashel.
“Neighbourhood Policing Team officers will continue to engage with local community representatives and partner agencies around any complaints about flags.”
In September last year, racist posters targeting Muslims in the Rathcoole estate, on the outskirts of north Belfast, were removed by police.
Around the same time, the force faced questions over why officers removed racist signage in Moygashel but ignored sectarian banners glorifying the UVF nearby.
In May 2023 PSNI officers from the Terrorism Investigation Unit removed ‘IRA’ signs from the Creggan estate in Derry.
The Twelfth 2025: Parade locations across Northern Ireland
Amy Cochrane, Belfast Telegraph, July 9th, 2025
The Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland has released full details for all parades taking place on the Twelfth of July this year across NI.
Bands and marchers will take to the streets at 18 locations across all six of Northern Ireland’s counties to mark the 334th anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne.
This year Dundonald will host a Twelfth demonstration for the first time in more than 50 years, as it has been named among the venues for this year’s Twelfth of July celebrations.
It will join 18 other venues across Northern Ireland including Belfast, Ballymena, Kesh, Coleraine, Keady, Coagh, Sixmilecross, Augher, Dromara, Dundrum, Kilkeel, Cullybackey, Rasharkin, Carnlough, Lisburn, Glengormley and Maghera.
The Twelfth demonstrations in Northern Ireland will follow the traditional Rossnowlagh parade held in Co Donegal on the preceding weekend on Saturday 5 July.
The Belfast Telegraph has compiled the main details of all events below which will see approximately 600 marching bands take to the streets across the country.
BELFAST
Leading the procession will be the County Grand Lodge of Belfast, setting off at 10:00am sharp from Belfast Orange Hall at Carlisle Circus.
The parade route sweeps through the heart of Belfast, passing Clifton Street, Donegall Street, Royal Avenue, and Donegall Place en route to a special Act of Remembrance at Belfast City Hall, where a wreath will be laid at the Cenotaph just before 10:30am.
That short act of remembrance will be a moment of solemn reflection in the midst of the celebration and the Orange Order said it is “an opportunity to honour the sacrifices of those who gave their lives in defence of their nation”.
From there, the parade continues through Donegall Square West, Bedford Street, and Dublin Road, onto Shaftesbury Square, Bradbury Place, Lisburn Road, Balmoral Avenue, and Malone Road, before reaching its destination at Barnett’s Demesne — an epic 6-mile journey (each way!), making this the longest Orange procession on the Twelfth.
The County Grand Lodge, comprised of nine Districts, they will be under the command of Rt. Wor. Bro. Spencer Beattie, who celebrates seven years at the helm as County Grand Master this Twelfth.
This year’s parade will include 77 bands — from all across Northern Ireland and Scotland.
Upon reaching Barnett’s Demesne, the official platform proceedings and traditional speeches will commence at 2:30pm.
The return parade begins at 3:30pm, as the bands and Lodges make their way home to their respective areas via the city centre.
A supporting programme of activities hosted by Belfast Orangefest will once again bring added excitement to the Twelfth, with family-friendly activities, cultural showcases and something for everyone to enjoy.
From 9:00am to 2:00pm, the city will be alive with a variety of family-friendly activities including music, street performers, food vendors, and interactive displays.
Shops across the city will open from 1:00pm to 5:00pm.
Twelfth celebrations
DUNDRUM
Dundrum will host the annual Battle of the Boyne Celebrations on Saturday, 12th July, with Castlewellan District LOL No. 12 welcoming several thousand participants and spectators for what promises to be a day of tradition, colour and pageantry.
Over 3,000 Orange members, accompanied by 70 bands will take part in this year’s ‘Mid and East Down’ celebrations.
The parade will leave the assembly point on the Belfast Road at 12:00 noon, making its way along Main Street and Old Road, to the Demonstration field on the Ballyloughlin Road.
The return parade will leave the field at approximately 4:00pm, retracing its steps back to the Belfast Road where the visiting Districts will board their busses.
Roads will close from 11:15am, and in order to minimise disruption and congestion, spectators and participants are encouraged to arrive early.
Accessible parking is available at Dundrum Football Pitches (Old Road) for Blue Badge holders only. Public parking in Dundrum village is limited; however ample parking will be available in the demonstration field car park which is accessible by turning off at Clough and then following signposted routes.
Families fled homes amid racial disorder says Housing Executive
Conor Sheils, Irish News July 9th, 2025
AT least 60 households contacted the Housing Executive in fear during the recent racially-motivated disorder with 18 requiring emergency shelter during the riots.
The organisation confirmed it had assisted households forced to leave their homes “as a result of civil disorder” which took hold in areas including Ballymena last month.
While 18 households were placed in temporary accommodation, the Housing Executive said other families had made their own arrangements and had not engaged directly with officials.
Meanwhile, it is thought that many other households may have been affected but did not contact the Housing Executive directly.
The figures emerged in response to an Assembly question submitted to the minister for communities.
Ballymena councillor Jack Gibson told The Irish News that the figures were “unacceptable”.
Need to build bridges to help those threatened
“For families to feel forced out of their homes, and for the Housing Executive to need to urgently rehome them, is obviously unacceptable. It’s a truly awful experience for the families involved, and an unnecessary cost to the public purse.”
He added that it was important for public representatives to condemn the disorder, and do all in their power to try to ease tensions.
“I think one of the things that struck me as well is that the Housing Executive is aware that other households who were affected had made their own arrangements and had not engaged with the organisation,” Mr Gibson added.
“That’s referring to some families, for instance, living in their cars for a few days. I think one of the things that shows the need for us to connect. I think that shows a community that doesn’t feel comfortable, doesn’t have the links it needs with public services to access help.
“We need to build bridges within the communities in Ballymena and elsewhere. Because you can’t have people who, in dire circumstances, don’t know or don’t feel comfortable going to the official channels to get help.
“I just think those figures are horrible. They’re obviously far too high. It’s a terrible state of affairs.
“I think the focus now has to be on making sure that doesn’t happen again.”
IRA’s plan to defend Garvaghy Road if parade forced through
Connla Young, Crime and Security Correspondent, Irish News, July 9th, 2025
The IRA had a secret plan to defend Portadown’s Garvaghy Road if authorities forced through a controversial Orange Order parade almost 30 years ago.
The “doomsday” blueprint was drawn up by republican leaders after a march was allowed through the mainly nationalist district in 1997.
Details have emerged on the 30th anniversary of the start of the Drumcree dispute on July 9 1995.
Sources say the ‘defensive plan’ was devised against the backdrop of sectarian murders linked to the parade stand-off and heavy-handed RUC operations targeting nationalist protesters.
At the time, the IRA was on ceasefire and the Good Friday Agreement had been signed earlier that year.
But sources with knowledge of the plan now believe it may have been part of a “double bluff” by IRA leaders to force the British into holding firm against the Orange Order by banning it from the mainly Catholic district.
It is also suggested the IRA was aware that information about the blueprint, which included proposals to arm hundreds of local people with homemade guns, would be passed to the British by informers.
Informed sources say self-confessed agent Denis Donaldson was present when details of the plan were revealed to local IRA leaders.
It is understood Garvaghy Road residents were not aware of the IRA’s plans.
The bitter parading impasse began in the summer of 1995 when Garvaghy Road residents objected to an Orange Order march passing through the mainly nationalist district as it made its way from Drumcree Church into Portadown.
The following year the parade was banned but after violent clashes, the decision was reversed. Nationalist protesters were forcibly removed from the Garvaghy Road to make way for the march.
At the height of the 1996 dispute, Catholic taxi driver Michael McGoldrick (31) was shot dead by renegade members of the UVF outside Lurgan.
The UVF, under the command of suspected British agent Billy Wright, also brought an armoured loading shovel to Drumcree, which was to be used to smash through RUC lines.
In 1997, the Orange Order was again allowed to march along the Garvaghy Road after the area was flooded with police in the early hours of Drumcree Sunday.
Pictures of nationalist residents hemmed into side streets by heavily-armed RUC members sparked a furious backlash from nationalists across the north.
Catholic residents of the Garvaghy Road were also blocked from attending Mass.
Within days the IRA restored a ceasefire, which had ended in February 1996.
In 1998 the Orange Order was stopped from marching through the nationalist district, sparking several days of loyalist violence.
In the early hours of July 12, a sectarian arson attack carried out by the UVF claimed the lives of Catholic schoolboys Richard (10), Mark (9) and Jason Quinn (8) in Ballymoney, Co Antrim.
After the tragedy, some Orangemen continued on with their protest while others went home, resulting in the Drumcree dispute effectively coming to an end.
Denis Donaldson’s role
Well-placed sources suggest that despite being on ceasefire, IRA members regularly met to discuss the dispute in the years after it began in 1995.
Both Mr Donaldson, who it is claimed was a representative of the IRA’s ‘general headquarters’, and another veteran republican attended many of the meetings.
Sources suggest Mr Donaldson was present at a meeting of high-ranking IRA members when the full blueprint to defend the Garvaghy Road was revealed by the veteran republican, who has since died.
It is suggested the secret IRA plan was specifically drawn up to defend the nationalist district in the event the Orange Order was once again forced through in 1998.
Sources say that in the months leading up to the annual dispute, a meeting was held involving representatives from three IRA ‘brigade’ areas, including north Armagh, south Armagh and east Tyrone. It is said that after the events of 1997 “serious plans were made”.
Significantly, it is suggested that a large array of homemade weapons and other materials were moved into north Armagh for use in any defensive action that was to be launched.
“Preparations were being made to defend the area,” it is claimed.
Hundreds of homemade firearms known as zip guns were manufactured and transported to various locations across north Armagh, and surrounding areas, in the months prior to the stand-off.
The single-shot weapons were designed to be used by people with no experience of handling firearms.
It is claimed the weapons, which fired shotgun cartridges, were to be handed out to local people and republican sympathisers in the event of a defensive scenario arising.
It is also claimed that the IRA moved “conventional” weapons into the area for use by its own members, who had experience of handling firearms.
Republican “back-up teams” were also going to be organised, which would attempt to move into the Garvaghy Road from several different directions in the event of conflict breaking out.
Sources believe that while the plan was being set out to those republicans attending the briefing meetings, the IRA leadership may in fact have been involved in a game of “double bluff” with the British.
It is claimed that several senior IRA members who were briefed about the plan were sceptical that it would ever be given the go-ahead.
It has also been suggested the IRA was aware that information about the plan was being passed to British intelligence.
This, it is believed, was intended to put pressure on the British government to take a hard stand against allowing Orangemen through the area in 1998.
Mr Donaldson was a familiar face on the Garvaghy Road during the years of the Drumcree dispute. He is said to have encouraged the defensive plan when it was being discussed at IRA meetings.
Mr Donaldson was publicly exposed as an informer in 2005. In April 2006, he was shot dead at a cottage near Glenties, Co Donegal.
The now defunct Real IRA claimed it was responsible three years later.
The Quinn brothers, from left, Jason (8), Mark (9) and Richard (10). Their other brother Lee (behind) was staying with his grandparents when the children were killed
‘Arrest in 1989 was staged at request of Martin McGuinness’
Connla Young, Irish News, July 9th, 2025
THE arrest of Martin Galvin in 1989 was staged at the request of former Sinn Féin Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, it has been claimed.
The former Noraid director of publicity, who was banned from entering the north and Britain in 1984, was detained while taking part in a stage-managed tour of the Bogside area of Derry five years later.
Mr Galvin, who is now the chair of the Freedom For All Ireland committee with the Ancient Order of Hibernians in the US, has taken part in a new documentary about the history of Irish Northern Aid, more commonly known as Noraid.
The high-profile group raised millions of dollars for the republican movement during the Troubles.
Mr Galvin’s profile was at its height in the mid-1980s when the British government issued an exclusion order banning the New York based lawyer from entering the north and Britain.
In 1984 the Noraid leader was secretly brought across the border by republicans and attended an anti-internment anniversary rally in west Belfast in defiance of the British ban.
As Mr Galvin took to a platform outside Sinn Féin offices in Andersonstown, RUC officers moved in to arrest him.
Sean Downes death
During the police operation 22-year-old Sean Downes was struck by a plastic bullet and died, while Mr Galvin was spirited away from the area.
A year later the Noraid official appeared at the funeral of IRA man Charles English in Derry and carried his coffin along with Martin McGuinness – again in defiance of the ban.
Mr Galvin has now revealed that solicitor Pat Finucane, who was killed by loyalists in 1989, had advised him that the British ban was illegal.
He believes the exclusion order was intended to “undermine Irish Northern Aid” in a bid “to stop the support that was coming in from America”.
Speaking to The Irish News, the prominent Irish American said republicans told him it was necessary to defy it.
“And when the ban was announced… my people in Sinn Féin, noted republicans, they said ‘it’s very important that you not allow this to happen, it’s very important that you come to the north and defy the ban, it’s very important that we not allow the British to get away with undermining American support by a censorship ban against you,” he said.
“So, I was in a position where I felt I couldn’t hold my head up, I couldn’t go back to the north If I didn’t agree to do it.
“So, that’s how it began.” Mr Galvin reveals he was brought across the border from Co Donegal on foot before he attended the west Belfast rally, at which self-confessed informer Denis Donaldson was a steward.
Donaldson was later sent by the leadership of the Provisional movement to the US to work with Noraid in the years before the IRA ceasefire.
“We couldn’t believe that they would attack a peaceful demonstration in the way they did in front of all the cameras of the world,” he said.
“No-one expected or believed or anticipated that.
“Denis Donaldson was a steward, he would have known that there would have been a peaceful event.”
MR Galvin explains how he returned to the north in subsequent years.
‘Don’t let us down’
“That was important, they came back again the next year and it was important to show the British that attacking peaceful demonstrations… would not work and eventually Martin McGuinness had me come over, get arrested and the British after that admitted that they couldn’t do anything and withdrew it (the ban) after I had spent a couple of days in Strand Road (RUC Station).”
He said Mr McGuinness, who died in 2017, had asked him several times to allow himself to be captured.
“Martin McGuinness, he had actually asked me to do this for several years,” Mr Galvin said.
“He used to send Pat Doherty, who was respected a lot and who I was good friends with, and asked me to this. He had asked me to do this in ‘87 and ‘88 and I initially declined.”
Mr Galvin said some republicans advised him against handing himself over.
“I had people in Ireland, Tyrone particularly, telling me ‘look, your claim to fame is you can get away, the British can’t catch you, now you’re going to walk in’.
“But I gradually agreed to do it. “We were walking around Derry, you can hear newscast ‘Martin Galvin’s now walking around the Bogside in defiance of an exclusion order with Martin McGuinness and other members of Sinn Féin’.
“The idea is Martin McGuinness’s idea, was to test the ban, I was arrested.”
The Irish American said Mr McGuinness believed that if he was arrested British authorities would have to drop the ban.
“They won’t be able to do anything and that was his attitude, and he thought it would make a point,” he said.
Mr Galvin was later taken to Strand Road RUC Station, where he sang the well-known rebel tune, The Foggy Dew, before being brought to London and flown back to the US.
“Tom Hartley had told me one time years before ‘you are a high profile republican, if you ever get caught by them act like one, don’t let us down’,” he said. Mr Galvin was later taken to Strand Road RUC Station, where he sang the well-known rebel tune, The Foggy Dew, before being brought to London and flown back to the US.”
“That’s what was going through my mind, so that’s why I marched out singing The Foggy Dew.”
Two MLAs asked more questions than all Sinn Féin representatives combined in NI Assembly
Conor Coyle, Irish News, July 9th, 2025
DUP MLA MICHELLE AND TUV MLA TIMOTHY GASTON TABLED MORE THAN 1,900 QUESTIONS
TWO MLAs have asked more oral and written questions at Stormont in the last year than all of largest party Sinn Féin’s representatives combined.
The Northern Ireland Assembly has gone into recess for the summer and will return for plenary and committee business in September.
Figures from the assembly website show a wide range in the number and questions asked to ministers in the Executive since it returned from recess in September 2024.
Some MLAs have asked close to 1,000 questions in the last year in either verbal or written form, while some have tabled just two.
Despite having 27 MLAs, representatives from the largest party in the assembly asked fewer questions than the two highest individual MLAs. DUP MLA Michelle McIlveen and TUV MLA Timothy Gaston tabled more than 1,900 questions in the last 10 months, while Sinn Féin has asked 1,512 questions in the same time frame.
MLAs from the DUP asked a total of 5,071 questions, followed by the SDLP on 4,509, Alliance with 3,223 followed by Sinn Féin.
SDLP post over 800 questions
SDLP MLAs feature among the highest individuals when it comes to asking questions of ministers, with Daniel McCrossan, Justin McNulty and Mark H Durkan each peppering ministers with more than 800 questions each in the last year.
Figures from the assembly website show a wide range in the number and questions asked to ministers in the Executive since it returned from recess in September 2024
Mr McCrossan, who is one of the most prolific question askers in Stormont having submitted 875 questions, said asking questions of ministers was “vital for transparency”.
“As the assembly’s official opposition, the SDLP uses oral and written questions as essential tools to hold ministers accountable and demand answers for the public we represent,” Mr McCrossan said.
“These mechanisms are vital for transparency and ensuring that Executive decisions are properly scrutinised.
“It’s not surprising that some Executive parties choose to ask fewer questions, doing so risks exposing their own ministers’ lack of delivery on key issues like healthcare, housing, or the A5 road project that I’ve repeatedly pressed ministers on. The public deserves answers.”
Understandably, many of the MLAs who feature among those who have asked the least amount of questions are ministers in the Executive. Communities minister Gordon Lyons has asked two questions while Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly has asked 12.
Michelle O’Neill asked over half of SF questions
First Minister Michelle O’Neill has asked 59 during that time, more than half of her party’s MLAs.
Outside of Executive ministers, nine of the 10 MLAs with the lowest number of questions hail from Sinn Féin’s ranks. They include South Antrim MLA Declan Kearney with 11, South Belfast MLA Deirdre Hargey with 15 and South Down MLA Sinéad Ennis with 21.
A spokesperson for Sinn Féin said it was “committed to representing our constituents, ensuring accountability at all levels – at the Executive, on the floor of the assembly and through our work in assembly committees”.
Bonfires show contempt for political diversity and for natural environment
LETTERS, Irish News, July 9th, 2025
MARCHING season is here and as a country we are bracing ourselves for the ‘bonfires’. These spectacles often come with the yearly burning of political representatives’ images. Then there is the burning of effigies of public figures and of course flags, mainly the Irish flag. All will be allowed to smoulder on environmentally destructive and harmful structures, in the name of ‘cultural expression and freedom’ or something like that.
To be honest, it is difficult to fully understand why these massive towers of environmental and public health nuisance have been allowed for so long. I’m guessing the main legal reason given for their continuation is to do with freedom of cultural expression.
“ Why is this considered to be the best way to mark this cultural event? We must be able to do better than this
These huge symbols will dominate the skyline in various areas throughout the north until they are ceremoniously destroyed on the Eleventh night. Construction cranes will be used to stack wooden pallets and other materials to staggering heights before they are set alight. While these are arguably quite impressive structures in terms of engineering and design, it is what they represent to the other inhabitants of this country that makes them most problematic.
The celebrations associated with these events mean that July is experienced by many in Northern Ireland as a time to escape the country or hide in their homes until they are over for another year. I struggle to understand how they are allowed to continue for several reasons, namely the imagery and hate crimes that happen on a yearly basis, but also because environmentally they are horrific to observe and are inexcusable in a time of climate change.
In recent years the pressure on the PSNI to act to manage the bonfires has increased. But it seems they get threatened with intimidation by the paramilitaries often associated with these areas. This is how paramilitaries and crime gangs behave and this needs to end. Nobody should be above the law, no matter what your cultural beliefs and practices are.
I find it worrying how these blatant displays of sectarianism and environmental disregard have been normalised and accepted here. To me these displays have very little to do with culture and are about a subsection of the population sending strong messages of defiance, aggression, domination and disrespect to other communities and sections of society. The bonfires were never this scale during the Troubles. Why have they become so aggressively antagonistic and offensive in recent decades?
In the United Kingdom bonfires are regulated because they are considered a public and environmental health concern as they impact air quality and are dangerous. Large open fires are a public nuisance and bonfires of the scale we have seen in recent years are symbolic of how Northern Ireland is negligent and outdated in terms of public health and safety.
These fires impact air quality, and they are upsetting and intimidating to many people. Historically these events have jeopardised homes, people and they endanger the natural world. Why is this considered to be the best way to mark this cultural event? We must be able to do better than this.
I would like to celebrate and enjoy the Eleventh night, like I enjoy other cultural events and festivities. But I will not celebrate a sub-culture that shows such an open and obnoxious contempt for political diversity, the natural world and air quality in the time of a climate crisis.
DR LOUISE TAYLOR Cookstown, Co Tyrone
Loyalist bonfire in Belfast - Location is close to electricity substation that powers two hospitals
Irish Times, July 08th, 2025
Legal action is expected to be launched over a loyalist bonfire in south Belfast that has sparked concern.
The location of the towering pyre is close to an electricity substation that powers two major Belfast hospitals.
It is set to be lit on July 11th in advance of annual Orange Order parades on July 12th.
NIE Networks said it has put mitigations in place at the substation to reduce the risk of damage.
It is understood that correspondence has been exchanged between a Belfast legal firm and the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA), Belfast City Council, Northern Ireland’s Department for Infrastructure and Department for Communities.
The PSNI said it “continues to work with our partner agencies, community representatives and landowners to address community safety issues relating to bonfires”.
Royal Victoria and Belfast City Hospital
A spokesperson added: “As there is the potential that judicial proceedings may be initiated, it would be inappropriate to comment any further.”
Earlier a spokesperson for the Belfast Health Trust confirmed the substation supplies power to both the Royal Victoria Hospital and Belfast City Hospital (BCH).
They said they are continuing to monitor developments in relation to the bonfire, and said at this stage there is no requirement to cancel any appointments.
“Our staff will remain in contact with relevant stakeholders over the coming days,” they said.
“On-site contingency measures include emergency backup generators, which are tested regularly.
“Belfast Trust continues to review these arrangements with clinical teams at the BCH site.
“The trust is satisfied that there is currently no requirement to cancel any planned treatments or procedures.”
Northern Ireland’s Minister for Health Mike Nesbitt paid a “fact-finding visit to the site” on Tuesday.
A department spokesperson said he took part in the visit “in line with his ministerial responsibilities”, and will receive updates from Belfast Trust and Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service.
Northern Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) said the NIEA is working with Belfast City Council to cover asbestos-containing material at the site and erect additional fencing.
Although a spokesperson said it is “primarily the responsibility of the landowner”.
Stormont Opposition leader Matthew O’Toole, who represents South Belfast, also expressed concern around the presence of asbestos on the site.
“The issue of the bonfire at Donegall Road exposes the democratic scandal of how this place works,” he said in a post on the social media network X.
“There is a credible risk to public health but neither the responsible Alliance environment minister, UUP health minister nor any Executive party will say anything. Why not?”
NIE Networks said it has met with relevant stakeholders to express its concerns over the bonfire’s proximity to the substation causing potential risk to critical infrastructure and power outages.
“Mitigations have been put in place, including turning off the transformers adjacent to the bonfire, building scaffolding with metal sheeting around the transformers and placing steel plates on open cable ducts to reduce the risk of fire and damage,” they said.
“Whilst these mitigations are in place, there will be a reduction in security of supply for the area.
“We would remind the public that flames near to power lines and electricity substations pose serious risk to everyone’s safety and wellbeing.”
The DAERA also said that NIEA officials remain in contact with the council and enforcement investigation continues in relation to the site.
The bonfire, just off the Donegall Road, is one of an estimated 300 set to be lit across July 10th-11th in Northern Ireland.
Most of the bonfires, which are normally lit before loyal order parades on July 12rh, pass off without incident.
However the fires, ranging from towering structures to beacons, have sparked anger following the burning of flags, effigies and election posters in the past.
One of the tallest bonfires in recent years has been at Craigyhill in Larne, which reportedly reached 62 metres in 2022. – PA
'Sick cycle of justification' -UUP’s Robbie Butler condemns Sinn Fein president's praise for leading Provo
By Adam Kula, Belfast News Letter, July 9th, 2025
Condemnation of Mary Lou McDonald’s comments in praise of a dead paramilitary this week has escalated, with the UUP’s deputy leader saying it fuels a “cycle of sick justification” for the IRA’s crimes.
Robbie Butler was reacting to renewed praise of Joe McDonnell from the Sinn Fein president.
McDonnell, one of the hunger strikers, frequently appears on murals, has a rebel song named after him, and a GAA under-13s contest in west Belfast has been staged in his name, promoted by the Feile an Phobail.
Writing on Facebook on Tuesday, Ms McDonald said: “On this day in 1981, Joe McDonnell gave his life on hunger strike in the H-Blocks of Long Kesh.
"A courageous son of Belfast, his sacrifice remains a beacon in the struggle for the freedom and unity of Ireland.
"Joe McDonnell will never be forgotten.”
McDonnell was a member of the IRA’s Belfast brigade.
He was interned from 1972 to 1974, but then released.
He went on to blow up a furniture shop in Belfast after a nine-man IRA team stormed the building and forced staff and customers into the basement at gunpoint.
McDonnell and his fellow IRA men then became involved in a gunfight with the RUC afterwards.
He was convicted of gun possession (but not of blowing up the business, attacking police, or threatening civilians), and was jailed.
Hunger Striker
It was in the Maze in 1981 that he embarked on a hunger strike, becoming one of seven IRA men (and three INLA ones) to die as a result.
Robbie Butler, deputy leader of the UUP and former prison officer, has now said: “The organisation that Joe McDonnell belonged to was responsible for the murder of almost 30 prison officers.
"The real heroes worth remembering are those who put on that uniform and served their communities with courage in the face of relentless threat.
"As long as people continue to hold up individuals like McDonnell as examples of achievement or sacrifice for their cause, it sends a chilling message. It forces victims and survivors from right across our society to relive the pain.
"As long as there are those who continue to eulogise those responsible for such misery and destruction, our children will be trapped in cycles of sick justification and revision of truth that cannot lead to proper reconciliation and a future free from hate.
"Reconciliation demands truth, not glorification of terror.”
Sinn Fein has been asked to comment.
A day earlier, TUV chairman councillor Allister Kyle had complained that “for his efforts to plant a bomb in a civilian area, the Sinn Fein leader holds him up as a role model – a ‘beacon’ for the kind of Ireland she wants to create”.
"That speaks volumes,” he added. “Without a trace of irony, Ms McDonald quotes McDonnell saying: ‘I am prepared to die if necessary, and I know that I may die.’
"But the grim reality is this: the hunger strikers chose to end their own lives.
"That choice was not afforded to the more than 1,700 men, women and children who were murdered by the IRA.”
Ballymena man on riot charges accused of carrying a tyre to police lines
By Alan Erwin, Belfast Telegraph, July 9th, 2025
A Ballymena man allegedly raised his fist in celebration after carrying a tyre towards police lines during rioting in the town, the High Court heard today.
Bobby Rainey later handed himself in and claimed he was only at the scene of the racially-motivated unrest as a spectator.
Details emerged as the 23-year-old was granted bail under a strict prohibition on entering the town. Rainey, of Camberwell Way, faces a charge of riotous assembly in connection with last month’s disorder.
Police were attacked with masonry, bottles and petrol bombs, while roads were blocked by fires during several days of street violence in Ballymena.
Crown counsel Charlene Dempsey told the court the trouble related to ongoing tensions between local residents and migrants in the town.
“Properties were damaged and (there was) information suggesting they were targeted due to foreign nationals living at these addresses,” she said.
Rainey was allegedly spotted in the Clonavon area on June 10 as police mounted an operation in response to the previous night’s rioting. Footage showed him remain at the scene after a final warning was issued for those gathered to disperse, according to the prosecution.
Although not part of the main crowd, Rainey was said to have stepped forward when a tyre rolled towards the PSNI lines. “He lifted the tyre over his shoulder, carried it towards a police Landrover and then placed it down,” Ms Dempsey submitted.
“He then lifts his fist towards the crowd and the crowd cheers at him, a celebratory fist in the air.”
Rainey handed himself in later that week after police released images of the number of individuals suspected of involvement in the disorder at Clonavon.
“He stated that he was there to spectate, but claimed he did not hear the numerous warnings issued to disperse,” the prosecutor added.
A defence barrister told the court Rainey “full and frank concessions” about his actions, but stressed he had not thrown any missiles at police.
“The applicant accepts he stepped onto the road, lifted the tyre and placed it down, and there was then some gesticulation towards the crowd,” counsel said.
“He was, as he put it, an observer of what was happening.”
Granting bail on a provisional basis, Lady Chief Justice Dame Siobhan Keegan ordered Rainey to live under curfew at an approved address outside the town.
“He is not to enter the precincts of Ballymena, or to be involved in any public demonstrations or processions,” she directed.
Dame Siobhan added: “He really should take a reality check on what he got involved in by being out and out when this riot was ongoing, because you just give oxygen to the people who are starting these things.”
Ballymena man on riot charges accused of carrying a tyre to police lines
By Alan Erwin, Belfast Telegraph, July 9th, 2025
A Ballymena man allegedly raised his fist in celebration after carrying a tyre towards police lines during rioting in the town, the High Court heard today.
Bobby Rainey later handed himself in and claimed he was only at the scene of the racially-motivated unrest as a spectator.
Details emerged as the 23-year-old was granted bail under a strict prohibition on entering the town. Rainey, of Camberwell Way, faces a charge of riotous assembly in connection with last month’s disorder.
Police were attacked with masonry, bottles and petrol bombs, while roads were blocked by fires during several days of street violence in Ballymena.
Crown counsel Charlene Dempsey told the court the trouble related to ongoing tensions between local residents and migrants in the town.
“Properties were damaged and (there was) information suggesting they were targeted due to foreign nationals living at these addresses,” she said.
Rainey was allegedly spotted in the Clonavon area on June 10 as police mounted an operation in response to the previous night’s rioting. Footage showed him remain at the scene after a final warning was issued for those gathered to disperse, according to the prosecution.
Although not part of the main crowd, Rainey was said to have stepped forward when a tyre rolled towards the PSNI lines. “He lifted the tyre over his shoulder, carried it towards a police Landrover and then placed it down,” Ms Dempsey submitted.
“He then lifts his fist towards the crowd and the crowd cheers at him, a celebratory fist in the air.”
Handed himself in after PSNI issued images of rioters
Rainey handed himself in later that week after police released images of the number of individuals suspected of involvement in the disorder at Clonavon.
“He stated that he was there to spectate, but claimed he did not hear the numerous warnings issued to disperse,” the prosecutor added.
A defence barrister told the court Rainey “full and frank concessions” about his actions, but stressed he had not thrown any missiles at police.
“The applicant accepts he stepped onto the road, lifted the tyre and placed it down, and there was then some gesticulation towards the crowd,” counsel said.
“He was, as he put it, an observer of what was happening.”
Granting bail on a provisional basis, Lady Chief Justice Dame Siobhan Keegan ordered Rainey to live under curfew at an approved address outside the town.
“He is not to enter the precincts of Ballymena, or to be involved in any public demonstrations or processions,” she directed.
Dame Siobhan added: “He really should take a reality check on what he got involved in by being out and out when this riot was ongoing, because you just give oxygen to the people who are starting these things.”
Calls for removal of migrant effigies in boat placed on loyalist bonfire in NI
By David Young, Jonathan McCambridge and Rebecca Black, PA, Belfast News Letter
Published 9th Jul 2025, 12:08
Effigies of migrants in a boat have been placed on a loyalist bonfire in Northern Ireland, prompting condemnation and calls for the display to be removed ahead of the pyre being lit.
The boat containing more than a dozen life-sized mannequins wearing life jackets has been erected on top of the bonfire in Moygashel on the outskirts of Dungannon in Co Tyrone.
Below the boat are several placards, one stating “stop the boats” and another “veterans before refugees”.
Sinn Fein Assembly member for Fermanagh and South Tyrone Colm Gildernew branded the display “vile” and “deplorable”.
“This is an absolutely disgusting act, fuelled by sickening racist and far-right attitudes,” he said.
“This is a clear incitement to hatred and must be removed immediately.
“Those who come to our island to make it their home are not the enemy.
“They are our friends, our neighbours, and are welcomed, cherished and valued by the vast majority of people here.
“Political leaders in this area must step up, call for the removal of these offensive materials and make it clear they do not support such vile, deplorable views.”
SDLP leader Claire Hanna also condemned the bonfire.
She said some involved in the bonfire tradition in Northern Ireland appeared motivation by “hate, confrontation and media rows”.
“Intricate effigies of humans beings, for burning. Who is this for?” she posted on X.
However, prominent loyalist activist Jamie Bryson insisted the display was a form of “artistic protest”.
“Every year Moygashel bonfire combines artistic protest with their cultural celebration,” he posted on X.
“Their yearly art has itself become a tradition.
“This year the focus is on the scandal of mass illegal immigration.”
A spokesperson for the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said: “Police are aware of an item placed on a bonfire at the Moygashel area. Inquiries are continuing.”
