The first-ever trial of a former British soldier accused of murder during the 1972 massacre began in Belfast on Monday.The only British soldier charged with murder over the Bloody Sunday massacre has gone on trial in Northern Ireland, more than half a century after paratroopers opened fire on unarmed civil rights protesters, in what became a watershed moment of the Troubles – the three decades of sectarian conflict in the region.Soldiers shot 26 civilians that day. Thirteen people were killed immediately, while another man died from his injuries four months later.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listThe former British paratrooper, known as Soldier F under a court anonymity order, is accused of murdering James Wray and William McKinney and attempting to murder five others when soldiers opened fire on unarmed Catholic civil rights marchers in Derry (also known as Londonderry) on January 30, 1972.Prosecutors have previously ruled there was insufficient evidence to charge 16 other former British soldiers.The massacre became a pivotal moment in the Troubles, igniting nearly three decades of violence between Irish nationalists seeking civil rights and a united Ireland, pro-British unionists wanting to remain in the United Kingdom, and the British Army.For the families of those killed and wounded, the proceedings at Belfast’s Crown Court mark the culmination of 53 years of campaigning for justice.From Widgery to SavilleOn the day of the killings, about 15,000 …
