Springhill massacre

The area of West Belfast was particularly stricken with violent confrontations between elements of the Irish nationalist community and the police and military forces of the British State.

A local resident, Brian Petticrew, seeing the nearby incident, ran over to help the wounded man, but was also fired upon, and hit in the back and the arm.

A British Army spokesman stated: "There had been a heavy exchange of fire between the IRA and troops, some of the dead and wounded were undoubtedly caught in a crossfire".

Two of the five dead at the scene, John Dougal (16) and David McCafferty (15), were reported to be members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army's Youth Wing, Fianna Éireann.

[1][4][5] In 2014, the Attorney General for Northern Ireland, John Larkin QC, announced that new inquests have been scheduled into the deaths that occurred in the Springhill incident.