Loughgall 'Was Shoot-to-Kill' Says SF

Republicans have today insisted that the infamous Loughgall SAS 'ambush' was in fact a 'Shoot-to-Kill' operation.

Despite a leaked report today in the Belfast Telegraph, concluding that the IRA unit "opened fire first" leaving eight members of the IRA's 'East Tyrone Brigade' dead on 8 May 1987, Sinn Fein MLA Barry McElduff said: "The men killed at Loughgall were victims of a British Government policy of Shoot-to-Kill.

"Nobody believes that the British Army unit were sent into Loughgall that evening to arrest anybody.

"They were sent there to kill the IRA unit and that is what they did," he said in an Sinn Fein statement.

"If the [PSNI's Historical Enquiries Team] HET try and put forward a different theory it will say more about that group's credibility than anything else.

"The families of those killed at Loughgall deserve the truth. They do not deserve continuing cover-up and concealment by the British government or by the HET.

"The fact that this report was leaked to the media before being given to the families says much about the intent of the HET with regard to this investigation," he said.

The terrorists were killed as they approached the police station with a 200lb bomb, its fuse lit, in the bucket of a hijacked digger.

The IRA men who died were the East Tyrone IRA 'Commander' Patrick Kelly, 32; Declan Arthurs, 21; Seamus Donnelly, 19; Michael Gormley, 25; Eugene Kelly, 25; James Lynagh, 31, Patrick McKearney, 32 and Gerard O'Callaghan, 29.

A civilian, Anthony Hughes, 36, was killed and his brother badly wounded when they were caught up in the crossfire.

It had previously been believed that the SAS had fired first making the shootings at Loughgall RUC station one of the most controversial of the Troubles.

It was reported that the soldiers fired more than 600 bullets with the IRA men firing 70 shots.

The Sinn Fein politician concluded: "The eight IRA Volunteers killed at Loughgall were much loved by their families and by the communities from which they came."

(BMcC)