Lyra McKee, 29, named as victim after shots were fired, petrol bombs thrown and cars torched during rioting in Creggan area

A 29-year-old woman has died after shots were fired in Derry, with police in Northern Ireland treating it as a “terrorist incident”. The victim was named as journalist and author Lyra McKee, who was covering the unrest taking place in the Creggan area of the city.

The assistant chief constable, Mark Hamilton, from the Police Service of Northern Ireland, said a murder inquiry had been launched after the death on Thursday evening. Petrol bombs were thrown and images from the scene show vehicles alight and others burnt out.

Play Video 2:18 Petrol bombs thrown at police in Derry as journalist killed - video

“Unfortunately, at 11pm last night, a gunman appeared and fired a number of shots towards police and a young woman, Lyra McKee, 29 years old, was wounded,” he said.

“She was taken away in a police Land Rover to Altnagelvin hospital but unfortunately she has died there. We have now launched a murder inquiry here in the city.

“We believe this to be a terrorist act, we believe it has been carried out by violent dissident republicans, our assessment at this time is that the New IRA are most likely to be the ones behind this and that forms our primary line of inquiry.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest A hijacked car explodes after being set on fire in Creggan, Londonderry. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA

A local journalist at the scene, Leona O’Neill, wrote on Twitter that after the woman was hit and fell beside a police Land Rover, officers rushed her to hospital, where the woman died. She said the rioting was in response to a house search that a large number of officers conducted in the area.

The unrest comes ahead of the Easter weekend where republicans mark the anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising and a time when dissidents are traditionally active.

Q&A What is the New IRA? Show Hide The New IRA is the biggest of the dissident republican groups operating in Northern Ireland. It has been linked with four murders, including the shooting of journalist Lyra McKee in Derry in April 2019. The group is believed to have formed between 2011 and 2012 after the merger of a number of smaller groups, including the Real IRA, which was behind the 1998 Omagh bombing. Its presence is strongest in Derry, north and west Belfast, Lurgan in County Armagh, and pockets of Tyrone, including Strabane. In January 2019 the group was responsible for a car bomb outside the courthouse in Derry. The explosives-laden car was left on Bishop Street on a Saturday night, and scores of people, including a group of teenagers, had walked past before it detonated. The New IRA also claimed responsibility for a number of package bombs posted to targets in London and Glasgow in March 2019.

The Sinn Féin deputy leader, Michelle O’Neill, said the killing in Derry was a “senseless loss of life”. She said: “I am shocked and saddened at the tragic news that a young woman has been shot dead by so-called dissidents in the Creggan estate tonight.

“The murder of this young woman is a human tragedy for her family, but it is also an attack on all the people of this community, an attack on our peace process and an attack on the Good Friday Agreement. I unreservedly condemn those responsible for killing this young woman.

“We will remain resolute in our opposition to the pointless actions of these people who care nothing for the people of Derry. We remain united in our determination to building a better and peaceful future for all.”

Michelle O’Neill added: “Those responsible should listen to the people, they should disband immediately and end their pointless actions against the community which tonight has tragically claimed the life of a young woman.

“I am appealing for calm and I urge anyone with any information about this killing to bring it forward immediately to the police and assist their inquiries.”

Mark H Durkan, the SDLP MLA for Foyle, said: “Just leaving Creggan, heartbroken and angry at the senseless loss of a young life. Violence only creates victims, that’s all it ever has done. The thoughts and prayers of our city are with the young woman’s family and friends, may she rest in peace.”

The Democratic Unionist party leader, Arlene Foster, tweeted: “Heartbreaking news. A senseless act. A family has been torn apart. Those who brought guns onto our streets in the 70s, 80s and 90s were wrong. It is equally wrong in 2019. No one wants to go back. My thoughts are also with the brave officers who stood in defence of their community.”

The Northern Ireland Policing Board said the killing was “utterly shocking” and appealed for witnesses or anyone with information to contact the police or Crimestoppers.

The US House of Representatives speaker, Nancy Pelosi, led a congressional delegation to the city earlier on Thursday, as part of a trip to show support for the peace agreement politicians in Washington helped to broker.

Reuters contributed to this report