|PIC1|Catholics and Protestants were united in their grief today for the funeral of Constable Stephen Carroll, the policeman murdered by republican dissidents just 48 hours after the fatal shooting of two soldiers last Saturday.

Hundreds of mourners stood in silence as the coffin passed on its way to St Therese’s Catholic church in Banbridge, County Down, in Northern Ireland. Following the hearse on foot were members of Constable Carroll’s family, including widow Kate.

Among those paying their respects were police officers, politicians and the leaders of the four main churches in Ireland. Representatives of Sinn Fein were also present, the party’s first ever attendance at the funeral of a police officer killed in a terrorist attack.

In his homily, Canon Liam Stevenson called for greater efforts towards peace.

He said: “Today is the day for peace. Let us concentrate our minds fully on building peace among people. Let us not be distracted. Let us not waiver. Let us not turn back. Let us not lose our focus. Let us double our efforts. A united people cannot be waylaid.”

He went on to condemn the killing, saying that an attack on the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) was “primarily an attack on the whole population of Northern Ireland”.

“The word ‘patriotism’ has been used in many different ways by many different people down the years. Tragically this word is one of the most abused words in the English language,” he said.

“In this very way, the killers of Constable Stephen Carroll have abused the term patriotism.

“A perfectly laudable aspiration such as patriotism is robbed of its intrinsic value when it's allied to violence and death in pursuit of its objectives.”

Two men, a 37-year-old former Sinn Fein councillor, and a 17-year-old are being held for questioning by detectives. They were arrested on Tuesday night on a housing estate not far from the spot where Carroll was killed in Lismore Manor, in Craigavon.

Sir Hugh Orde, the chief constable of the PSNI, paid tribute to Carroll’s bravery.
"The bottom line is, he knew in his heart of hearts, and his colleagues knew in their hearts, that they were going to a place where sometimes people try to hurt us,” he said.

"Did he step back? No. Did any of his colleagues step back? No. They went and they dealt with the call. Stephen tragically lost his life."

He assured Kate Carroll that her husband’s service would not be forgotten.
"He will not be forgotten, Kate, I promise you,” he said. “My staff and officers will not forget what he did, I know the community will not forget what he did."