Press Releases25 Mar 22

Joint statement from the Archbishop of Armagh and the Bishop of Connor on North Belfast incident

The Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, the Most Revd John McDowell, and the Bishop of Connor, the Rt Revd George Davison, have issued the following statement in relation to the hijacking and security alert in North Belfast this morning:

‘Our thoughts are firstly with the people most affected by this morning’s incident in North Belfast.  It is particularly shameful that a peace–building event held in honour of the memory of John and Pat Hume, and a funeral service, have been disrupted in this way.

‘Peace and stability in Northern Ireland are maintained and advanced through good relationships at all levels within Ireland and across these islands, and there is no place for violence or the threat of violence in our society.  Violence has nothing to offer and can only push our society backwards.

‘We would urge anyone who has any information that may be useful to a police investigation to contact the PSNI.’