Army
Body Of Man Shot By Secretive Army Unit To Be Exhumed
The body of a man shot dead in Belfast by the British Army 44 years ago is to be exhumed.
It follows an appeal last December by detectives in Northern Ireland investigating the activities of a secretive unit known as the Military Reaction Force (MRF).
The exhumation of Daniel Rooney's body at the city's Milltown cemetery will take place on Monday and be carried out by the PSNI's Legacy Investigations Branch.
Rooney was 18-years-old when gunned down in the St James Crescent area of West Belfast on September 26 1972.
It's alleged that members of the undercover MRF conducted a series of shootings in the city while hunting for members of the IRA.
Eighteen incidents, that took place between April and September 1972 in which 17 people were shot, two fatally, are now under investigation.
The Army's MRF unit is understood to have operated for around 18 months during one of the most violent periods in the 'Troubles' before being disbanded in 1973.
The number of troops involved was small, with about 40 non-uniformed soldiers taking part in patrols throughout West Belfast in unmarked cars.
Many of those shot were teenagers including a 15-year-old boy. A BBC Panorama programme broadcast in 2013 included claims from former MRF members that the unit had indeed killed unarmed people but that the actions had "saved lives".
Last year police officers in the province appealed for former members of the Military Reaction Force to come forward.
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