Key Events & Deaths on this day in Northern Ireland Troubles
24th May
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Monday 24 May 1971
There was more violence in Belfast which was to continue sporadically throughout the summer.
Friday 24
May 1974 Day 10 of the UWC strike
Two brothers, Sean Byrne (54) and Brendan Byrne (45), both Catholic publicans, were shot dead at their public house The Wayside Halt, Tannaghmore, near Ballymena, County Antrim.
They had been shot by Loyalist paramilitaries.
Talks were held at Chequers, the country home of the British Prime Minister, involving: Harold Wilson, then British Prime Minister; Merlyn Rees, then Secretary of Sate for Northern Ireland, Brian Faulkner, then Chief Executive; Gerry Fitt, then Deputy Chief Executive; and Oliver Napier, then Legal Minister and Head of the Office of Law Reform.
A statement was issued after the talks which stated that there would be no negotiations with those who operated outside constitutional politics.
[Public Records 1974 – Released 1 January 2005: Note of the meeting held at Chequers, England.]
The British Government Cabinet held a special meeting later in the day.
[Although the Cabinet agreed to allow Rees to put troops into power stations if he wished there was little support for such a course of action on the part of senior ranks in the British Army in Northern Ireland.] [ Sunningdale; Ulster Workers’ Council Strike. ]
Monday 24 May 1982
It was announced that the DeLorean car factory would close with the loss of 1,500 jobs.
Thursday 24 May 1984
Stalker Inquiry Begins
John Stalker, then Deputy Chief Constable of the Greater Manchester Police, arrived in Belfast to begin an investigation into the alleged ‘shoot to kill’ policy of security forces in the region.
[The investigation was to concentrate on three main cases that occurred on 11 November 1982, 24 November 1982, and 12 December 1982. However, in May 1986 before Stalker was to being the final part of his investigation he was removed from his duties as Deputy Chief Constable and ordered to return to England. He was subsequently reinstated but not allowed to return to Northern Ireland.]
Wednesday 24 May 1989
The scheduled assessment of the working of the Anglo-Irish Agreement (AIA) was published in a review document. The review was conducted under Article 11 of the AIA which stated that an assessment of the operation of the Intergovernmental Conference should be undertaken to see “whether any changes in the scope and nature of its activities are desirable”.
Thursday 24 May 1990
There was further trouble at Crumlin Road Prison over the issue of segregation. Peter Brooke, then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, met with John Hume, then leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), in London for talks.
Wednesday 24 May 1995
Mayhew Meeting With Adams
Patrick Mayhew, then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, had an ‘informal’ private meeting with Gerry Adams, then President of Sinn Féin (SF), at an investment conference in Washington, USA. The meeting lasted about 35 minutes.
The conference was attended by 1,300 delegates. Michael Ancram, then Political Development Minister at the Northern Ireland Office (NIO), met a SF delegation at Stormont, Belfast.
The Northern Ireland Police Authority (NIPA) rejected the latest Annual Report from the Chief Constable. The Police Authority criticised the report as not meeting the required standards of public accountability.
Saturday 24 May 1997
A bomb was planted in Dundalk in the Republic of Ireland; the bomb was defused by Gardaí. The bomb was believed to have been planted by the Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF).
Loyalists, who were continuing their picket of the Catholic church at Harryville in Ballymena, County Antrim, attacked Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) officers who were protecting those Catholics attending the mass.
Monday 24 May 1999
The News Letter (a Belfast based newspaper) denied claims by James Molyneaux, former leader of the UUP, that its editorial on 17 May 1999 had been drafted by Alistair Campbell, then offical spokesman for the Prime Minister.
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Remembering all innocent victims of the Troubles
Today is the anniversary of the death of the following people killed as a results of the conflict in Northern Ireland
“To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die
– Thomas Campbell
To the innocent on the list – Your memory will live forever
– To the Paramilitaries –
There are many things worth living for, a few things worth dying for, but nothing worth killing for.
6 People lost their lives on the 24th May between 1973 – 1982
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24 May 1973
John Wallace (32)
nfNI
Status: British Army (BA),
Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Killed by remote controlled bomb, detonated when British Army (BA) foot patrol were searching house, Cullaville, County Armagh.
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24 May 1973
Ian Donald (35)
nfNI
Status: British Army (BA),
Killed by: Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Killed by remote controlled bomb, detonated when British Army (BA) foot patrol were searching house, Cullaville, County Armagh.
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24 May 1974
Sean Byrne (54)
Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),
Killed by: non-specific Loyalist group (LOY)
Shot together with his brother, at their licensed premises, The Wayside Halt, Tavnaghmore, near Ballymena, County Antrim.
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24 May 1974
Brendan Byrne (45)
Catholic
Status: Civilian (Civ),
Killed by: non-specific Loyalist group (LOY)
Shot together with his brother, at their licensed premises, The Wayside Halt, Tavnaghmore, near Ballymena, County Antrim.
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24 May 1975
Noel Davis (22)
Protestant
Status: Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC),
Killed by: Irish National Liberation Army (INLA)
Killed by booby trap bomb in abandoned car, Ballinahone, near Maghera, County Derry.
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24 May 1982
Anthony Anderson (22)
nfNI
Status: British Army (BA),
Killed by: not known (nk)
Killed, when run over by British Army (BA) Armoured Personnel Carrier during petrol bomb attack on the vehicle, Butcher Street, Derry.
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Belfast Child 