Paramilitary-Style Easter Commemoration in Londonderry
Several hundred individuals, some dressed in combat uniforms and wearing face coverings, participated in a dissident republican Easter commemoration held in Londonderry on Monday.
The parade proceeded from Creggan to the city cemetery and was led by 18 people wearing paramilitary-style uniforms, an action that directly contravenes a ruling by the Parades Commission.
This event, organized by the political party Saoradh, commemorates the 1916 Easter Rising. Saoradh has previously been linked by police to the New IRA.
Last year, a similar parade resulted in violence when rioters threw approximately 50 petrol bombs at police near the city walls.
For this year's event, the Saoradh national committee stated it would be accompanied by one flute band and 500 participants and supporters.
The parade made a brief stop for a man dressed in paramilitary-style uniform to lay a wreath at the republican monument located in Creggan.
When the procession reached the cemetery, around a dozen masked young individuals were observed carrying petrol bombs.
The Parades Commission had issued a directive that no paramilitary-style clothing should be worn and that illegal flags should not be displayed during this year's event.
