Former Provo saw soldier fire

A former Provo today described how he saw a soldier fire twice, possibly hitting a young man in the stomach on Bloody Sunday.

The ex-paramilitary, known to the Inquiry as PIRA 14, said in his statement he had gone on the civil rights march with his brother and another IRA man Colm Keenan.

While at Block One of the Rossville Flats he spotted a soldier firing his weapon towards Free Derry Corner.

He said the soldier then turned his rifle in an arc, so it was pointing in his general direction.

“I then saw the gun recoil so I am sure that he fired the weapon. I think he fired two shots.

“As he did so, a young man standing in front of me, just to my right, clutched his stomach in a spasm.”

PIRA 14 identified the young man as 17-year-old Hugh Gilmore, one of the 13 unarmed civilians who lost their lives in the Bogside area of Derry on January 30, 1972.

He said he thought the teenager, who was standing near the rubble barricade in Rossville Street, had been shouting at the soldiers shortly before he was shot.

“He may also have been throwing a stone at them, but I cannot be absolutely sure about this.”

PIRA 14 said that Mr Gilmore shouted something like “I’m hit” and turned and ran.

“I saw him stumble as he got to the end of Block One. There were some people who pulled him around the corner.”

PIRA 14 said he ran after him and saw him lying near a telephone box.

“Someone had pulled up his shirt and I could see blood and entrails coming out of the right side of his stomach. It looked like an exit wound.

“There was a young girl nearby squealing hysterically. I looked into his eyes. They rolled back and I could see that he was dying.”

The former IRA volunteer said that he had come to Derry on the day of the march but refused to answer where he was normally based, other than to say it was “in Ireland”.

After the the shooting of Mr Gilmore, he said he and Mr Keenan made their way to the Bogside Inn where he saw some of his former comrades in the Official IRA.

“I saw the Stickies take up their positions. They went to some flats at the bottom of Westland Street.

“They had weapons but I know they did not use them.”

He added that he received information that the Provos were not to take any action against the Army.

“At that stage, I realised there was nothing to be done even though people were making comments that we had not defended the people. They were very angry.”