THE BLOODY SUNDAY INQUIRY/DAY 311: A soldier who opened fire on three occasions in Derry on Bloody Sunday, when British army paratroopers shot dead 13 unarmed civilians in the Bogside area of the city in January 1972, denied yesterday that the shots he fired were an attempt "to flush out the IRA".
Soldier B, who was a member of the lst Battalion of the Parachute Regiment, told the inquiry that it was possible that he was one of the two paratroopers who are believed to have shot teenager Damien Donaghy and John Johnston, (59), who were the first civilian gunshot casualties during the Bogside shootings.
However, the witness, who gave his evidence from behind a screen to protect his identity, said his memory of the day was poor and he underwent brain surgery in 1986 as a result of which he suffered some short-term memory loss.
Questioned by barrister Richard Harvey, counsel for the family of victim Jim Wray, Soldier B said at the time he was regarded as being a good shot and had represented his regiment at a competitive level.
He said his attitude and the attitude of other members of his unit on Bloody Sunday was - "I wish we could go inside there and sort them out. I wish we could go into the Bogside."
He agreed with Mr Harvey that there was talk among the paratroopers along the lines "Let us see if we can flush the IRA out of there", but he rejected the suggestion that the reason he opened fire was to "flush the IRA out".
Meanwhile, the inquiry will hear evidence today from the officer who commanded the paratroopers in the Bogside. Derek Wilford, who was a lieutenant colonel in the Parachute Regiment on the day of the killings, has submitted a 25-page statement to the inquiry.
It is expected his evidence will take up to two weeks to complete.