The funeral of Lyra McKee, the journalist shot dead in Derry last week, brought a rare political unity to Northern Ireland on Wednesday. Theresa May joined dignitaries including the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, the Irish PM, Leo Varadkar, the Irish president, Michael D Higgins, and the Irish minister for foreign affairs, Simon Coveney, at the funeral.
The New IRA shot McKee, 29, while she observed rioting in Derry last Thursday. The group has apologised and said its gunman was aiming at police. The Northern Ireland secretary, Karen Bradley, and leaders of Northern Irish political parties are also at the service, which started at 1pm at St Anne’s Cathedral in central Belfast.
McKee’s death has prompted calls for the leaders of Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionist party (DUP) to restore power-sharing, which collapsed in acrimony in 2017, leaving a political vacuum.
McKee’s north Belfast family is from a Catholic background but chose a Protestant cathedral because it wanted a cross-community, cross-border and multi-cultural service. The service is led jointly by Stephen Forde, the dean of St Anne’s, and Fr Martin Magill, a Catholic priest. Members of the National Union of Journalists are to form a guard of honour. McKee is due to be buried later on Wednesday at Carnmoney cemetery. Read more via Guardian
The funeral of Lyra McKee – in pictures
The funeral of the murdered journalist Lyra McKee is taking place on Wednesday in Belfast. McKee was shot dead as she observed clashes between police and New IRA dissidents on the Creggan estate in Derry on 18 April See all the photos via the Guardian
A crowd gathers outside St Anne’s Cathedral to listen to the service
Photograph: Liam McBurney/PA