Shots fired at Northern Ireland police car in Derry city

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jul/30/shots-fired-northern-ireland-police-car

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Police officers had a narrow escape when bullets struck their patrol vehicle in Derry city on Wednesday morning.

Two shots hit an armoured police landrover in the Bogside area but no one was injured, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said.

The attack took place at about 1am although the PSNI only confirmed the incident on Wednesday.

The bullets caused damage to a window of the armoured vehicle as it drove down Westland Street in the heart of the republican district.

Suspicion will fall on the new IRA, which has a support base and presence on the west bank of the river Foyle in Derry.

PSNI Supt Garry Eaton, the senior police commander in Derry, said: "It is fortunate that we are not speaking about deaths or injuries. Members of the crew were kept safe by protective equipment on the vehicle. However, if the shots had missed, then anyone walking or standing on the street could have been hit."

He added: "Those who organised and carried out the attack were totally reckless and showed total disregard for the lives of people in that community. Despite this incident; we remain committed to providing the people of Derry with the type of positive and dedicated policing that they ask and expect of us."

Colum Eastwood, SDLP member of the Northern Ireland Aassembly for Foyle, condemned those behind the attack.

"Those who carried out this attack have no regard for their community, or the future we are trying to build. These people need to hear the message loud and clear that their actions are not wanted in our community and can never achieve the aims they say they want to achieve by violent means."