In 2024, Northern Ireland saw a big drop in violence, with fewer shootings, bombings, and paramilitary-style attacks. Sadly, there was one security-related death this year: Kevin Conway was shot in Belfast in January, which is thought to be linked to an organized crime group. This follows a remarkable year in 2023 when there were no security-related deaths at all, the first time this has happened since records started in 1969, according to the Police Service of Northern Ireland.
The annual security report shows big decreases in violence from January to December 2024. There were only six bombing incidents, down from eight the year before, and just 17 shootings compared to 44 in 2023. The most significant falls in shooting incidents happened in Belfast and the Derry City and Strabane area.
There were also 23 cases of paramilitary-style assaults, a drop from 31 in 2023, with most of these attacks happening in Belfast. One of the victims was under 18. Belfast and the Mid and East Antrim areas saw a significant reduction in these assaults.
For paramilitary-style shootings, only five were reported this year, almost a quarter of the number from 2023. In terms of arrests under the Terrorism Act, there were 67 this year, down from 104 last year. Only nine people were charged, compared to 21 in the previous year.
The police also found fewer weapons, explosives, and ammunition. There were 11 firearms discovered in the past year, compared to 20 the year before. The amount of explosives found dropped from 3.22 kg to just 0.52 kg, and only 191 rounds of ammunition were recovered, down from 1,013 in 2023.
This information comes from an automated news agency feed, which means the text has not been changed.
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