U2 STARS Bono and Adam Clayton have received an apology from the Jamaican government after police opened fire on the seaplane in which they had just arrived at Negril on Wednesday.
They were in a launch taking them ashore when police fired on the aircraft, which was taking off, mistakenly thinking it had no clearance to land and was involved in drug trafficking.
Bono and his wife, Ali, and children Jordan (6) and Eve (3), along with several others in the party, dived for cover in their craft as the bullets flew around them.
A spokeswoman for Bono and Clayton said the two were about 60 yards from the plane when the police on land opened fire. "There was nobody injured: "They are well and everyone is fine. They are, carrying on with their holiday."
Asked if the singers were angry about the incident, she said the police commissioner had been quoted as saying that Bono was concerned and upset, "so I suppose he knows what he is talking about."
The Irish special envoy to Jamaica, Mr Peter King, said there appeared to have been a misunderstanding. The Jamaican, government had apologised and "I understand that the apology has been unreservedly accepted."
He said the U2 members were good friends of Mr Chris Blackwell (the chairman of Island Records) with whom they were staying. "They are regular visitors and we hope to see them back again quite often." The seaplane is owned by US pop singer Jimmy Buffett.
Mr Jonathan Morrison, a Jamaican police assistant superintendent, said it was "not clear why it would have been necessary to shoot. We're still gathering information."