Taoiseach Micheál Martin urges calm after Fianna Fáil TD says British Army never shot Irish civilians
He was reacting to the claim by one of his own backbenchers, Cathal Crowe of Co Clare, that British Army troops never shot any civilians in Ireland – for which he has since apologised.
But Mr Martin, who revealed Mr Crowe contacted him to express his regret at embarrassing the Fianna Fáil party, said people should 'calm down'.
Commenting at the Bloom festival, Mr Martin said there has been 'a bit of an over-the-top reaction', in response to Mr Crowe's absolution for the British Army.
'We don't need any lessons in terms of Northern Ireland and the pain and the violence – and yes, the British state was responsible for Bloody Sunday, Ballymurphy, and much, much more,' Mr Martin said.
'I think he was talking in the context of Gaza. Thank God that Gaza never happened in Northern Ireland to the same extent, although one person killed is one person too many.
'As far as I'm concerned, there was horrendous violence in Northern Ireland perpetrated by the State and by the Provisional IRA and by Loyalists like the Glenanne gang.
'There were reprehensible murders, and shocking bombings like Enniskillen, Birmingham, the Dublin-Monaghan bombing, Belturbet, and right across Britain.
'A lot of innocent people were murdered and slaughtered by the IRA. People in Derry and in Ballymurphy were murdered by the British army. We resolved that through a peace process and through reconciliation.
'When I spoke with [US] president [Donald] Trump, and he referred back to the viciousness of what went on in Ireland over 30 years, I made the point to him: We managed to build a peace out of all that vicious violence.
'Peace can work, and the same needs to happen in the Middle East.'
Mr Martin said Mr Crowe had been anxious to correct his remarks after speaking 'off the cuff'.
'Cathal Crowe is a very solid TD and doesn't need to be reprimanded. I think people need to be careful about overreacting here.
'We have a peace process in Ireland that is sustained, and we are at peace with Britain. I'm building reconciliation in Northern Ireland through the Shared Island programme, so there's no need to be re-fighting old wars.'
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