Bloody Sunday Report Released, Britain Apologizes

In one of the most shocking attacks of the conflict in Northern Ireland, thirteen marchers were shot dead in Londonderry when British paratroopers opened fire on crowds at a civil rights demonstration on January 30, 1972. For nearly 40 years the British government has denied any wrong-doing, but then on June 15, 2010, the government released the results of a 12 year investigation into the attack. The report concludes that British paratroopers fired first and were unprovoked. The report found British troops entirely responsible for the violence. Newly elected Prime Minister David Cameron apologized on national television telling the victims' families that, on behalf of his nation, he was deeply sorry. Read the BBC story and watch Cameron's apology here. The report painstakingly details the Bloody Sunday attack, corroborating each point with witness testimony. As this editorial argues, revealing the truth is an important step toward justice, "It’s not just the Devil who’s in the details ... God, it turns out, is in there too. Daylight ..."