{"version":"1.0","type":"rich","provider_name":"Acast","provider_url":"https://acast.com","height":250,"width":700,"html":"<iframe src=\"https://embed.acast.com/$/b2fb5f0b-0ce7-4e5c-b6e0-9b1febd06aea/68fb4b07deee754a72911716?\" frameBorder=\"0\" width=\"700\" height=\"250\"></iframe>","title":"Bloody Sunday: Not guilty verdict in Soldier F murder trial","description":"<p>A <a href=\"https://www.irishtimes.com/tags/northern-ireland/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Belfast court</a> delivered a not-guilty verdict on Thursday in the trial of a former <a href=\"https://www.irishtimes.com/tags/british-army\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">British Army</a> paratrooper accused of the murder of two young men in the <a href=\"https://www.irishtimes.com/tags/bloody-sunday/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Bloody Sunday shootings</a> in <a href=\"https://www.irishtimes.com/tags/derry/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Derry</a> 53 years ago.</p><p><br></p><p>It was the first-ever <a href=\"https://www.irishtimes.com/crime-law/courts/2025/10/23/bloody-sunday-trial-belfast-court-delivering-soldier-f-verdict/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">trial</a> of a former British soldier accused of killing unarmed civilians during the massacre.</p><p><br></p><p>The veteran, referred to as Soldier F for legal reasons, was accused of the murders of James Wray and William McKinney during a civil rights march in the city on January 30th, 1972.</p><p><br></p><p>By the end of that dreadful day, 13 unarmed civilians had been shot dead by the Parachute Regiment while 17 were left with injuries.</p><p><br></p><p>So how was the verdict received in the packed courtroom, particularly by the Bloody Sunday families whose fight for justice has endured for more than a century. A UK public inquiry had already found that the army unlawfully killed 13 people in Derry on that day, so why did the prosecution against this former paratrooper fail?</p><p><br></p><p>Irish Times Northern editor Freya McClements was in court for the verdict.</p><p><br></p><p>Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair and John Casey.</p>","author_name":"The Irish Times"}