A prominent Irish republican dissident has been remanded in custody over a speech he made supporting the “armed struggle” of the New IRA and other terror groups opposed to the peace process.
Damien “Dee” Fennell from north Belfast appeared in a Northern Ireland court on Tuesday accused of encouraging acts of terrorism and of inviting support for a proscribed organisation.
The 33-year-old from the Ardoyne district was cheered on by a small group of republicans inside Craigavon magistrates court.
He was arrested at his home on Monday by the police service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). His detention is connected to a speech he delivered in Lurgan, Co Armagh on Easter Sunday when he described the armed actions of Irish republican paramilitaries as “legitimate”. That speech was posted online and prompted unionist demands for Fennell to be arrested.
A PSNI detective sergeant said he believed he could connect Fennell to the two charges levelled against him.
Peter Corrigan, Fennell’s lawyer, said there was no application for bail although one may be made at a later date. Judge Mervyn Bates then told Fennell: “You are remanded by this court, there being no application for bail.”
A critic of Sinn Féin’s peace strategy, Fennell is also a spokesman for the Greater Ardoyne Residents Collective – a group that has opposed Orange Order marches passing by the Catholic district in the city.
Fennell’s supporters clapped and cheered as he was taken from court following the brief hearing. Outside the court, republicans unfurled a banner accusing the British government and the PSNI of imposing a new form of internment without trial. Fennell will appear in court again on 1 May via video link from prison.
