Last Friday evening an Ulsterbus containing bandsmen, women and children
had a window smashed by a bottle as it passed through the Diamond area of
Kilrea. Luckily no one on the bus was injured.The band was destined for
Ballymena after taking part in a Loyalist parade in Limavady.
This is the latest in a series of unprovoked and sectarian attacks upon
band buses merely travelling through Kilrea en route to another
destination. In fact, a similar attack took place the previous Saturday,
fortunately the bus and its occupants escaped serious damage or injuries.
However the aforementioned incidents and others clearly dispel any
attempt to minimise the violence of Friday evening or categorise it as a
one off.
Regrettably, it is again left to the Ulster Bands Association to
unreservedly condemn and highlight this type of cowardly attacks which
clearly have been orchestrated by republican elements within Kilrea.
It is a situation which cannot be tolerated as it is extremely clear
that as these attacks become more frequent and vicious the greater the
chance of someone receiving a serious injury.
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