Sinn Fein, the political arm of the IRA, apologized for the murder of Lord Mountbatten 40 years later

The Duke of Edinburgh did not live to see it. But Sinn Fein, the political arm of the Irish Republican Army and central figure in Northern Ireland politics, he asked “sorry” for murdering Lord Mountbatten, the beloved “Uncle Dickie” of the royal family and former viceroy of India, in a terrorist attack on his yacht in Ireland in 1979.

Mary Lou McDonald, the first president of Sinn Fein after the Good Friday peace deal in Northern Ireland, apologized for the “heartbreaking” death of the Duke of Edinburgh’s uncle and mentor. It’s the first explicit apologies of this type of a leader of the Republican party for the assassination.

Lord Mountbatten, who was Prince Philip’s false father when he came to Britain without a family and raised Prince Charles, was murdered when the IRA blew up his fishing boat, in the village of Mullaghmore in Co Sligo. He had spent his vacation at his summer residence at Classiebawn Castle.

Sinn Fein forgiveness request

When asked if she would apologize for the murder, Sinn Fein Chairman Lou McDonald told Times Radio: “I can say, of course, I’m sorry that happened. Of course it’s heartbreaking“.

Speaking the day after Prince Philip’s funeral, McDonald said his job now was to ‘lead from the front’. “I think it’s our job to make sure there aren’t any other children; that no other family, no matter who they are, faces the kind of trauma and angst that sadly was too common on all sides, ”he said.

“I have an absolute commitment and responsibility to ensure that no family is ever faced with this again. And I am happy to repeat it at the time and the weekend when her queen buried her beloved husband ”, she assured.

However, McDonald added that “the army and the armed forces, associated with Prince Charles, carried out very many violent actions on our island”.

The consequences of the civil war

The civil war between Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland has left at least 3000 dead and lasted 30 years. They achieved peace during lengthy negotiations which culminated in the Good Friday Agreement, initiated by British Prime Minister John Major and followed by Tony Blair with the support of Ireland and Bill Clinton.

Today, it is endangered by Brexit and the refusal of Protestants to accept the Northern Ireland Protocol, which regulates Brexit and the passage of goods between Great Britain and the EU.

McDonald’s comments came six years after Prince Charles met with Gerry Adams, Sinn Fein leader in the peace talks and former IRA commander in Belfast, at the National University of Ireland in Galway.

At the time, Prince Charles spoke about how the murder of his ‘beloved’ uncle had helped him understand the pain the people of Northern Ireland had suffered during the 30 years of riots.

“At the time, I couldn’t imagine how we could cope with the anguish of such a deep loss. Because, to me, Lord Mountbatten represented the grandfather that I never had, ”he said before visiting Ireland in 2015.“ So it seemed to me that the foundations of everything we did values ​​in life had been irreparably torn apart, ”he said.

“Through this ordeal, however, I now understand in a deep way the suffering endured by so many others on these islands, regardless of faith, denomination or political tradition,” he concluded.

The journey of reconciliation

Queen Elizabeth first visited Ireland between May 17 and 20, 2011, during a state visit and in a gesture of reconciliation, with the Duke of Edinburgh. In 2012, on another royal visit, he greeted and spoke with Martin McGuinness, former head of the IRA and Deputy Prime Minister of the Belfast Legislature, who is now deceased. The first one he had deemed premature.

Sinn Fein President McDonald’s comments depart from his predecessor, Gerry Adams, who has expressed regret in the past. But he insisted that Lord Mountbatten “knew the dangers” to visit Ireland.

The IRA bomb that was planted on Lord Mountbatten’s fishing boat also killed his grandson, Nicholas Knatchbull, 14, and Paul Maxwell, 15, a local boy who was on the crew.

The mother-in-law of her eldest daughter, Baroness Brabourne, 82, died of her injuries the next day.

Paris, correspondent

ap