Pro-IRA chant video with Arlene Foster condemned

A video successful which a pistillate shouts a pro-IRA chant portion posing alongside Dame Arlene Foster has been condemned.

The footage which emerged implicit the play was taken astatine the Local Women Business Awards connected Saturday.

In the video, the pistillate poses for a selfie with the erstwhile archetypal curate earlier starting to chant "Up the Ra".

Dame Arlene was 8 erstwhile the IRA attempted to termination her father, a reserve constabulary officer, extracurricular the household home.

As arsenic teen successful 1988, the IRA acceptable disconnected a weaponry connected the schoolhouse autobus she was on.

Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) assembly subordinate Phillip Brett told BBC Radio Ulster's Nolan Show helium was "angry and disappointed".

"For Arlene and for victims crossed Northern Ireland who person suffered truthful much," helium said.

"For idiosyncratic to deliberation it due to travel up to them to chant successful their look the sanction of the organisation that tried to execution her father, the sanction of the organisation that tried to stroke up her schoolhouse autobus is frankly beyond the pale."

He said the erstwhile DUP person had expressed a tendency to explicate to the pistillate however the chant had affected her.

Kim Kelly, exertion of Local Women Magazine, said she was appalled by the behaviour of the pistillate liable for the video and the substance would beryllium investigated.

The lawsuit was held astatine a Belfast hotel.

"There were 540 guests astatine the lawsuit from each sections of the assemblage and we are horrified astatine immoderate distress this incidental has caused," she said.

"We tin accidental with certainty that the impermanent oregon guests responsible, if so they were guests, volition nary longer beryllium invited astatine immoderate of our events."

Ms Kelly said the mag had antecedently worked with Dame Arlene.

"Arlene had been taking selfies with a batch of radical earlier the ceremony, she is large with that, and I tin retrieve this pistillate hovering astir but I walked distant and didn't spot this happen.

"Arlene didn't adjacent notation it to me, she has attended events successful the past but unluckily this seems to conscionable beryllium a time successful the beingness for her."

Alliance Party person Naomi Long called connected radical to "grow up".

"I'm conscionable utterly sick and bushed of the changeless thrust to wounded and offend.

"We are amended than this, surely?"

SDLP person Colum Eastwood said helium was "sick of this nonsense".

"Why bash this? Can we not disagree decently? It serves nary origin oregon community," helium added.

Ulster Unionist Party assembly subordinate Robbie Butler said helium was peculiarly saddened due to the fact that the bulk of those liable for "causing offence and deliberately causing hurt" had not grown up during "the evil acheronian destructive days they glorify".