The Saville Inquiry in Derry has heard how attempts to get the first casualties of the Bloody Sunday shootings to hospital were hampered by police and soldiers. In one incident, a priest was stopped by troops and had a gun put to his head. The enquiry chairman, Lord Saville, also placed a British journalist, who refused to identify a soldier he interviewed, in contempt of the tribunal. His case has been referred to the High Court in Belfast.
Continuing his opening statement, the counsel for the Inquiry, Christopher Clarke, quoted from depositions made by soldiers on duty in Derry on Bloody Sunday. Troops in an observation post on the city walls reported hearing a burst of fire from a Thompson sub-machine gun. One officer quoted by Mr Clarke said that the distinct sound of the Tommy gun made him firmly believe the IRA was firing at his colleagues. When he then heard British Army rifles being used in response, he said that he was pleased "our boys" were fighting back, and that "somebody was being given a fairly hard time".
Another soldier claimed that, as shots were being fired at the troops, he saw a senior officer in the Parachute Regiment standing nearby. He said the officer was "going completely mad", shouting into his radio, "this is the third time I've asked". The soldier took this to mean the officer wanted to send the Paras into the Bogside.
Before the Tribunal adjourned for Easter, the Chairman Lord Saville announced that a British journalist who refused to identify a soldier he had interviewed about Bloody Sunday, was in contempt of the Inquiry. Lord Saville, said that the case of Toby Harnden, formerly the Ireland correspondent of the Daily Telegraph, had been referred to the High Court in Belfast for it to decide what action should be taken.
