Reopening Old Wounds in Northern Ireland Dishonours Fallen Heroes

Fallen comrades deserve our gratitude and remembrance, not endless politically-motivated inquiries.

As veterans who served in Northern Ireland, we must respectfully disagree with the current push to reopen investigations halted by the Northern Ireland Legacy Act.

We understand the pain of families who lost loved ones, including many close friends of ours. We were — and still are — there for them, saw it all, and helped them find strength to go on.

However, we also viewed our service as what it was — conflict.

And in conflicts, tragically, soldiers die.

We have already processed our grief within our units and with the families of our fallen comrades. There's nothing healthy about perpetually reopening these wounds through endless legal proceedings. Our military ethos has always been about resilience — we grieve, we reenergise, and we push forward.

"One more mile" wasn't just a saying — it was how we dealt with loss and trauma, finding strength in our unit cohesion and shared purpose.

The harsh reality is that these new hearings are an exercise in futility. The terrorists responsible for killing our colleagues have already been granted “letters of comfort” — effectively immunity from prosecution. So while these investigations might reopen painful chapters for veterans' families, they cannot deliver any meaningful justice. The terrorists walk free while we debate the merits of investigating decades-old cases.

Our fallen comrades would not want their deaths to be used as political leverage or to keep their families trapped in an endless cycle of hearings and investigations.

To keep their families and the families of their comrades who are now being hounded, from being trapped in endless persecution, sometimes, the healthiest thing we can do is acknowledge our losses, recognise their sacrifice, honour their memory, and continue the march forward — just as they taught us to do.

Aldwin Wight, Commanding Officer, 22 SAS, 1992-94; George Simm, Regimental Sergeant Major, 22 SAS, 1992-94; Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, Squadron Commander, 22 SAS, 1991-94; Bob Parr, Warrant Officer, 22 SAS 1981-1999. Nick Kitson, Squadron Commander 22 SAS 02-04; David Maddan, Squadron Commander 22 SAS 95-96.