Woman shot dead in Northern Ireland was journalist who covered violence there for years

A “terrorist incident” in which a young woman died took a further tragic twist when the victim turned out to be a promising journalist who had reported on the long-term violence in Northern Ireland.

“Derry tonight, absolute madness” were Lyra McKee’s last words on social media before being gunned down in the Northern Irish city on Thursday. Fire from petrol bombs can be seen in a photo she posted as clashes between security forces and nationalists turned into chaotic violence.

McKee was an editor at Mediagazer, a trade magazine focusing on the media industry. She also worked as a freelance journalist for several outlets including the BBC, The Atlantic and Buzzfeed. In 2016 she was named one of Forbes’ Magazine’s 30 under 30 in media and just last year, an article described her as a “rising star” of investigative journalism.

“Unfortunately, at 11pm last night, a gunman appeared and fired a number of shots towards police and a young woman, Lyra McKee, 29 years old, was wounded,” Assistant Chief Constable Mark Hamilton told the press.

McKee later died in the hospital from the gunshot wounds, and now police are launching a murder investigation.

Police say the New IRA, a group of “violent dissident Republicans,” are likely responsible for the killing. This weekend is the anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising, a day when conflict traditionally flares up in Northern Ireland as Republicans mark the first significant armed uprising in the fight for independence from Britain.

McKee had written a novella based during a period of heightened violence in Ireland known as “the Troubles” – 30 years of clashes that left some 3,000 dead.

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