Sinn Féin East Derry MLA Cathal Ó hOisín has said there is a need for demilitarisation “all across the North” after a senior British army officer involved in a large scale military exercise in the Limavady area of Co Derry said they were “here for the foreseeable future.”
About 500 soldiers will this week be taking part in areas including Binevenagh mountain and Magilligan in what will be the biggest military training exercise to be held in the North since before the Troubles.
Lieutenant Colonel Matt Monroe, of the Royal Scots Borderers, said it was a “really important” exercise and was about preparing them for potential operational service overseas.
“It’s definitely a really momentous occasion in the sense that it’s a really important and potentially hugely beneficial exercise that we’re looking forward to very much.
He added: “From a security perspective, it would have been really difficult to have run this exercise during Operation Banner (the British army’s operation in Northern Ireland from August 1969 to July 2007)..
“It’s right to do it now, because we face an uncertain future, there’s a tremendous amount going on in the world so it’s important that our soldiers are prepared appropriately and well.”
While 500 soldiers were taking part in what he described as a military skills competition,” not all of them would be involved at the same time and said local people should not be alarmed if they saw large numbers of soldiers in their area.
“In the eight or nine weeks that we’ve been in Northern Ireland we’ve been tremendously well looked after, the local community have been hugely enthusiastic, very kind to us and we’re really optimistic about the rest of the time we will spend in Northern Ireland,” he said.
“We’re here for the foreseeable future.”
However, Mr Ó hOisín said holding what he described as “large scale war games” in the area was a “backward step.”
He added: “We want to see demilitarisation right across the North, not hundreds of heavily armed British forces marauding across a public forest park which has been classified as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
“We want to see demilitarisation in all its forms, with no exceptions, and this decision flies in the face of that.”
“As Irish republicans we do not believe that British forces should be on the streets of any cities, towns or villages anywhere in the North.”
Mr Ó hOisín: “The people of this area have suffered at the hands of British forces for decades and it is completely insensitive to bring this exercise to Binevenagh.”
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