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'Life is precious, life is brittle, life is very fragile. We saw that on Sunday night. Everybody hurts.'

Priest asks mourners at the funeral of the fourth victim of the Donegal crash to treat the car as a lethal weapon and to decide to drive with care.

Donegal crash victims funerals PA Wire / PA Images PA Wire / PA Images / PA Images

BITTER WINDS BLEW across west Donegal today as communities gathered to say goodbye to the four young men killed in a horrific road crash last weekend.

For days family and friends have taken comfort in recalling the life and times of the friends but for many the grief, loss and turmoil created by the sudden deaths of Mícheál Roarty (24), John Harley (24), Shaun Harkin (22) and Daniel Scott (23) was too much to take on this last day of January.

Hundreds of mourners crisscrossed the rugged landscape in a bid to attend as many of the funerals as possible throughout the day.

Many travelled from different parts of the globe to say a final farewell to the four killed instantly when their Toyota Corolla car left the road near Magheraroarty at 8.40pm last Sunday night. 

Shops and businesses closed their doors as a mark of respect to the four young men who had grown up amongst them.    

Donegal crash victims funerals The funeral cortege of Shaun Harkin makes its way to Christ the King Church in Gortahork PA Wire / PA Images PA Wire / PA Images / PA Images

Shaun Harkin, age 22, late of Killult, Falcarragh was the first to be laid to rest as his funeral mass took place at Christ The King Church, Gortahork at 10am. 

Guards of honour from Cloughaneely GAA Club and Glenea Utd, as well as the local national and secondary schools lined the roadway as Shaun’s remains were taken to the church. 

Fr Sean Ó Gallchoir told hundreds of mourners that this was the start of a terrible, tragic traumatic and tear-filled Thursday. 

“This is one of the darkest days in the history of the community in Donegal as we say a final farewell to many of our young men of twenty, snatched from us in the prime and bloom of youth,” he said. 

Gifts including a photo and an electrical instrument to symbolise his job as an apprentice electrician, as well as his phone were brought to the altar. 

Fr Ó Gallchoir also made reference to Shaun’s friends, many of whom had travelled from Australia and the Middle East to be here for his funeral Mass. 

Ninety minutes later, the funeral Mass of Mícheál Roarty, late of Dunlewey, took place in the Sacred Heart Church, Dunlewey.  

PA-40936120 resize 2 The funeral of Mícheál Roarty at the Sacred Heart Church in Dunlewey Niall Carson / PA Wire Niall Carson / PA Wire / PA Wire

Hundreds of mourners stood outside as the freezing winds of the Poison Glen bit hard. 

Tears flowed openly as members of Mícheál’s beloved Gaoth Dobhair GAA team led his coffin into the church. They carried three cups and his coffin was draped in the Gaoth Dobhair flag. 

Fr Brian Ó Fearraigh said Mícheál was a rogue – but a loveable rogue – and that there was laughter wherever he went. 

He told mourners, “He has finished the game – the game of his life – but those he has left behind him must continue playing until the final whistle and sure Roycee will be sitting on the sidelines waiting for you.” 

Donegal crash victims funerals Niall Carson / PA Wire Niall Carson / PA Wire / PA Wire

Those in the congregation included the 1992 All-Ireland winning captain Anthony Molloy and the chairman of the Donegal GAA County Board Michael McGrath. 

Among the gifts brought to the altar were his Gaoth Dobhair GAA jersey and Dunlewey Celtic soccer jersey, as well as a pair of football boots and some aftershave.

Others to attend the funerals in the three parishes of Gaoth Dobhair, Gortahork and Falcarragh were TDs Pat the Cope Gallagher, Pearse Doherty and Thomas Pringle.

The Bishop of Raphoe, Dr Alan McGuckian, attended three of the four funerals.

John Harley, of Carrowcannon, Falcarragh, was the third of the young men to be buried. 

Hundreds also attended John’s funeral mass at St Finian’s Church, Falcarragh at 1pm. 

Donegal crash victims funerals The funeral of John Harley at St Finian's Church in Falcarragh PA Wire / PA Images PA Wire / PA Images / PA Images

A captain of the local Cloughaneely GAA club, Fr James Gillespie said John was a leader on the field. 

Although a talented footballer, he didn’t like to put in the hard work training and often said, “Training is for players who are trying to improve,” the congregation was told. 

Fr Gillespie said he arrived at John’s house at 11pm on the night of the horrific crash but that he had no words. 

“I arrived to a house of tears and shock, and disbelief, numb with what had just unfolded. Very little was said, and what could be said? No one had words,” he said. 

An apprentice electrician, Fr Gillespie also told how John worked in a local bar and look forward to Friday afternoons because it was “pension day” and some elderly customers would come in. The parish priest said John loved nothing more than chatting with them and seeing if everything was okay with them. 

Many of his family did not know this as he went about this in a quiet, laid-back and modest way, like many things he did in his life.

The bells tolled again at Christ The King Church, Gortahork, at 2.30pm for the funeral Mass of Daniel Scott, aged 23, late of Bedlem, Gortahork.     

The Mass was delayed as hundreds of mourners from the other three funerals made their way back to Gortahork for the final funeral.

Donegal crash victims funerals The funeral of Daniel Scott takes place at Christ the King Church in Gortahork Niall Carson / PA Wire Niall Carson / PA Wire / PA Wire

Fr Sean Ó Gallchoir said Daniel was back in the same spot where he made his communion and then his confirmation. 

He recalled how Daniel loved keeping up his appearance and described him as “dapper Daniel”. 

Gifts of hair gel, a pair of Daniel’s blue suede shoes and a GAA jersey were brought to the altar. 

He had worked in many places, including Denmark and England, but never liked working in the bog cutting turf, added Fr O Gallchoir.   

As well as sympathising with his extended family, the parish priest reached out to Daniel’s girlfriend Helen and said that he would probably have one day wanted to start a family. 

He had a special word for the eight friends who had flown in from Australia to be with the families of Shaun, Micheal, Daniel and John. 

Donegal crash victims funerals Niall Carson / PA Wire Niall Carson / PA Wire / PA Wire

But Fr Ó Gallchoir’s final words were words of warning for those who get behind the wheel, putting their lives at risk around the roads of Ireland. 

“Life is precious and life is brittle, life is very fragile. We saw that on Sunday night. Everybody hurts,” he said. 

“Every time that I sit into a car, that you sit into your car, there should be the deep decision and resolution to drive with care, to drive with attention, to drive safely so that no harm will fall on anybody. 

“The car is a lethal weapon. We all know that life is busy, life is hectic, we’re all in a rush, we’re all in a hurry, we all have deadlines but deadlines can sometimes result in dead lives,” he said.

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    Mute Sequoia
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    May 23rd 2021, 4:44 PM

    Is this not a hijacking?

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    Mute Derek Long
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    May 23rd 2021, 4:47 PM

    @Sequoia: 100%

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    Mute Derek Long
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    May 23rd 2021, 4:49 PM

    @Sequoia: absolutely

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    Mute Breda Kelly
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    May 23rd 2021, 5:25 PM

    @Sequoia: Fighter jet forced it down, air piracy.

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    Mute Paul Furey
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    May 23rd 2021, 6:06 PM

    @Sequoia: A state sponsored hijack!

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    Mute John Sleator
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    May 23rd 2021, 3:50 PM

    That was a very convenient bomb scare.

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    Mute bread of heaven
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    May 23rd 2021, 4:57 PM

    @John Sleator: Awful Stuff. It would remind you of the treatment of Assange or Tommy Robinson.

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    Mute Tommy Roche
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    May 23rd 2021, 5:14 PM

    @bread of heaven: Tommy Robinson ?? lol…

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    Mute Mjhint
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    May 23rd 2021, 5:46 PM

    @bread of heaven: Mr Yaxley Lennon is hardly comparable to Assange or this gentleman. Remember he threatened the Irish community in Luton for singing IRA songs in pubs.

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    Mute Barry Somers
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    May 23rd 2021, 5:48 PM

    @Tommy Roche: lol Tommy.

    Surely you mean Stephen Yaxley-Lennon,

    Isn’t it odd he changed his name just so he could should vile abuse at people

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    Mute Seán Ó Briain
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    May 23rd 2021, 6:59 PM

    @bread of heaven: Go away out of it you chancer. Tommy Robinson has never been pulled off a plane for being an opposition blogger. He’s been arrested for assault. contempt of court and other things. But never has he been arrested for anything remotely close to this.

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    Mute Will
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    May 23rd 2021, 7:08 PM

    @bread of heaven: Evo Morales plane was pulled down too in 2013 by the EU as they thought Snowden was on it. If the shoe was on the other foot there would have been hell to pay.

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    Mute Paul Mcnevin
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    May 23rd 2021, 8:44 PM

    @bread of heaven: Stick to Welsh rugby.

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    Mute Paul Whitehead
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    May 23rd 2021, 11:00 PM

    @bread of heaven: you mean Robinson the racist?? Lol

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    Mute John Mulligan
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    May 23rd 2021, 5:07 PM

    That’s a state sponsored hijack. Let’s see how our membership of the security Council works out now.

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    Mute oMaraTpe
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    May 23rd 2021, 7:14 PM

    @John Mulligan: nothing’s gonna happen, Lukash is a Putin wannabe n has his protection. What can council do against Putin? The bigger picture is there is a prep goin on for Russia Belarus “unification”. Arrested guy must be really important

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    Mute Arch Angel
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    May 23rd 2021, 7:31 PM

    @John Mulligan: This was my thought too. It’s not that well known that the KGB survived in Belarus. They evidently orchestrated this planes “hijacking” knowing he was onboard in order that they could ‘arrest’ him in their territory. This is state sponsored terrorism. While most nations will condemn it, at best Russia will just tut tut but do nothing.

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    Mute Mary Nugent
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:30 PM

    @oMaraTpe: Belarus the next step.

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    Mute Peter O Donnell
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    May 23rd 2021, 4:19 PM

    Think of the fear of the other passengers, think what the crew must have being going through. Even the airline protocols called into action during this falsified event just to get someone they wanted and which mo doubt they will kill.

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    Mute John Mc Donagh
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    May 23rd 2021, 4:23 PM

    @Peter O Donnell: You don’t stick your neck out in Russia or China, Toe the line or pay the price!!

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    Mute Paul Cunningham
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    May 23rd 2021, 4:42 PM

    @John Mc Donagh: Belarus, another Belt & Road country for the CCP.

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    Mute Philippe
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    May 23rd 2021, 6:05 PM

    @Paul Cunningham: Not true, Belarus is very much in the Russosphere and close to Moscow than Beijing.

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    Mute Dave Ryan
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    May 23rd 2021, 4:55 PM

    The plane was hijacked

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    Mute Joey
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    May 23rd 2021, 6:36 PM

    You really need to change the headline and state exactly what this is. The president ordered a bomb scare against the aircraft so it would land. Shocking behaviour.

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    Mute John Costello
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    May 23rd 2021, 5:56 PM

    A blatant act of state sponsored terrorism.The EU , and UN must take immediate and decisive action.

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    Mute Maurizio
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    May 23rd 2021, 6:21 PM

    @John Costello: the EU and UN are useless organisations with little or no power as was witnessed over the years.

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    Mute Paul Shepherd
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    May 24th 2021, 12:38 AM

    @John Costello: like what….ban the importation of snails from Belarus? Just like the invasion of Crimea, the western “powers” will huff and puff and do diddly squat as per usual. The only language the likes of Lukashenko understand is force. A few meaningless sanctions will be imposed to make us all feel better.

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    Mute JAMES KELLY
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    May 23rd 2021, 6:23 PM

    Stop all flights from Belarus landing in the EU !! Might put some manners on Lukashenko !!

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    Mute Fiona Fitzgerald
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    May 23rd 2021, 6:36 PM

    @JAMES KELLY: Surely that would only imprison campaigners within their own country? Every democracy needs its Wild Geese.

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    Mute Jonathan O'Riordan
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    May 23rd 2021, 4:28 PM

    Maybe the honorary consul (Irish man)for Belarus would care to confirm what happened. And if not maybe he should finally consider his position

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    Mute a
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    May 23rd 2021, 7:38 PM

    I hope the pilots protected the cockpit voice recorder before the authorities got on board. It will contain important information on how it all unfolded. No doubt the air traffic control recorders will be “missing”.

    This was a state sponsored hijacking of an Irish registered aircraft. No two ways about it.

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    Mute Peter O Donnell
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    May 23rd 2021, 8:40 PM

    @a: you do realise it’s not an Irish aircraft. Ryanair have been de listing Irish aircraft and moving to cheaper countries such as Poland or tax havens such as Malta to register aircraft and set up subsidiary airlines as part of its union busting, social dumping tactics and evading labour laws over the last 5 or 6 years.

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    Mute Dave Hammond
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:29 PM

    @Peter O Donnell: yeah i get that you just want to use this as a chance to rant and whinge about Ryanair – but you don’t get to make up your own facts- ryanair moved to recognise unions for the first time in its history in recent years and now operates a fleet over 450 planes and have another couple hundred on order – a great irish business success story to take on huge established european airlines around europe and grow to be so large – but hey let’s dump all the usual irish begrudgery on an occasion where they did literally nothing wrong here. FFS

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    Mute Seán Ó Briain
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    May 23rd 2021, 7:01 PM

    Stick heavy sanctions on Belarus. The EU accounts for a quarter of all Belarussian exports. This is state-sponsored terrorism.

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    Mute MrJohne
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    May 23rd 2021, 5:13 PM

    The west won’t do anything…

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    Mute Joe Thorpe
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    May 23rd 2021, 6:29 PM

    @MrJohne: This is one for Ursula to deal with as usual it will be a bit of huffing & puffing before a dose of Alzheimer’s sets in & everyone forgets about it, if you fall out with Belarus you fall out with Putin & there’s too much to lose with gas pipelines for this to be allowed to get too heated. They wouldn’t have hijacked an American or Chinese plane.

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    Mute Paul Furey
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    May 23rd 2021, 6:55 PM

    @MrJohne: they will.

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    Mute Bluebeard67
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    May 23rd 2021, 10:23 PM

    @Joe Thorpe: please do not use a horrendous disease to make your point

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    Mute Seán C
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    May 23rd 2021, 4:03 PM

    So telegram is a good messaging app now? Most of your stories seem to attack telegram as being useful for right wing groups.

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    Mute Ally Mc Culladgh
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    May 23rd 2021, 6:01 PM

    @Seán C: Because it is.

    33
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    Mute Desmodromic
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    May 23rd 2021, 7:06 PM

    Kidnapping

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    Mute Gary Creaven
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    May 23rd 2021, 7:33 PM

    Hijack by another name.

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    Mute Clurichaun
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    May 23rd 2021, 5:15 PM

    Lukoshenko is playing hardball. Maybe he is feeling wobbly.

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    Mute whitewater
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:31 PM

    They should probably divert European flights around Belarus for the foreseeable future.

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    Mute Murph11
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    May 23rd 2021, 7:46 PM

    Pilot will get a bollockin for being late.

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    Mute Ciaran Burke
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    May 24th 2021, 2:34 AM

    @Murph11: but will be congratulated for keeping the weight of the plane down so it’s 50/50.

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    Mute Nomis Andrews
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:12 PM

    “The flight path, visible on the Flightradar24 website, suggests the plane was actually nearer to Vilnius than Minsk when it turned.” (BBC)

    So why didn’t the pilot continue to Vilnius if it was the closest airport in an emergency?

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    Mute Dmitry Sullivan O
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:19 PM

    @Nomis Andrews: because it was followed by MIG29

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    Mute Adam J
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:25 PM

    @Nomis Andrews: Depends if the plane was in Belarussian airspace or Lithuanian airspace when it was intercepted, I would guess it was the former so it would be diverted to the nearest Belarussian Airport

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    Mute Chris Linehan
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:31 PM

    @Nomis Andrews: The reported Mig 29 flying beside it was probably enough to convince the pilot to make the detour.

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    Mute John Costello
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:50 PM

    @Dmitry Sullivan O: Indeed. They might as well have been in the cockpit holding a gun to the pilots head.

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    Mute Maria Quinn
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    May 23rd 2021, 10:06 PM

    @Nomis Andrews: the pilots do what aircontrol told them to do. Obviously you don’t go to the closest airport in the event of bomb, you go to the airport that can handle an explosion.
    The militar plane following is the normal protocol in these situations.

    I wouldn’t be surprised that it turns up the bloggers (activists for ones and mass manipulators for others) caused their own fate. From unknown to be known worldwide. Stinks

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    Mute Paul Whitehead
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    May 23rd 2021, 11:07 PM

    Full EU sanctions immediately. Cripple them. Zero trade with EU and zero EU flights to Minsk. Don’t sell them a bottle of water. Personal sanctions and asset freezing against all the government members.

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    Mute Mick.
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    May 23rd 2021, 11:41 PM

    @Paul Whitehead: Added to a full embargo of All goods and services, freeze all assets and accounts across the EU and request that all allied countries do the same. Plus travel ban on every known member of the regime to or via any EU country.

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    Mute Agnieszka Mickiewicz
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:12 PM

    How does one go about orchestrating a fake bomb scare in such a way that the plane ends up being diverted to Minsk specifically?!?! Don’t get me wrong, it’s obviously what happened, I don’t doubt it for a minute but I’m genuinely curious how you do it. Poor guy.. I beg he knew, the moment he realised where they’re landing, that there was no bomb, I bet he knew it was all ‘for him’.

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    Mute Mick.
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:22 PM

    @Agnieszka Mickiewicz: Aircraft Control contacted the Captain, informed them of a security threat onboard. Ordered Captain to divert to Minsk. Backed up the Order with a fully armed MiG 29 Fighter Jet to “Escort” the plane to Minsk.

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    Mute Agnieszka Mickiewicz
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:50 PM

    @Mick.: Jesus. That’s hijacking. I bet he knew once he spotted the jet then. I’m really disturbed by it, I didn’t think I could be shocked by Lukashenko’s actions but I’m really really disturbed by this.

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    Mute Maria Quinn
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    May 23rd 2021, 10:13 PM

    @Agnieszka Mickiewicz: that’s the normal protocol in those cases. Eurocontrol is investigating how a plane in the air got an false alarm of bomb. Which was the origin airport? Within the EU?
    Yes, poor lads from being completely unknown to be known worldwide. It seems very convenient

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    Mute John O'Brien
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    May 23rd 2021, 6:59 PM

    When do we begin air strikes?

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    Mute Niall Power
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    May 23rd 2021, 8:09 PM

    @John O’Brien: they are preparing the attack kites in Baldonnel as we speak!

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    Mute John Costello
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:40 PM

    @John O’Brien: The Cavalry Corps are fuelling up the tank as we speak.

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    Mute Darren Walsh
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    May 23rd 2021, 8:26 PM

    Barr them from the Eurovision

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    Mute Nomis Andrews
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:15 PM

    @Darren Walsh: They are already banned from Eurovision for entering a song which mocked the opposition demonstration which took place after the recent rigged election.

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    Mute Nomis Andrews
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:27 PM

    Michael will meet the plane in person when the flight arrives back in Dublin.

    Everyone on the plane will be given a free token for a soft drink in Burger King

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    Mute AA
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    May 24th 2021, 12:34 AM

    If this goes unanswered by the EU it means any flight to Asia or Australia is never going to be safe again as those flights overfly Siberia and may be forced down. Belarus had 4 agents onboard who forced the crew to declare an emergency and Belarus ATC ordered them to land in Minsk even though Vilnius was closer. They had a fighter jet escort them just to be sure of compliance. And why, so they could kidnap a young opposition journalist critical of a dictator in Belarus. He now faces 15 years to death penalty. EU and NATO need to grow a pair here or this Eastern emboldened aggression will continue. What next, nerve agents or radiological weapons used in Europe. Oh wait… That’s been done.

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    Mute Dmitry Sullivan O
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:18 PM

    Nothing, absolutely nothing will happen as a reaction from EU. The detained guy will be sentenced to death and EU will just be worried about it as happened many times by now.

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    Mute Brian Lenehan
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    May 23rd 2021, 9:07 PM

    Is he an “activist” or a “journalist”? Seems to me they’re all the same nowadays.

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    Mute Kat EN
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    May 24th 2021, 12:14 AM

    It wasn’t convenient, it was MADE. that’s how communist countries operate.

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    Mute Pablo Lord
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    May 24th 2021, 6:18 AM

    Remember when European air space was closed to the president of Bolivias plane on the behest of the obomba administration, forced to land in Austria to search for Snowden,

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    Mute Patricia O'Reilly
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    May 24th 2021, 3:13 AM

    What a despicable thing to do… the crime of kidnap, very country should stop all flights to and from Belarus. This man must be released.. it’s amazing how all these presidents are so running scared of the media. Unbelievable egomaniacs.

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    Mute Maria Quinn
    Favourite Maria Quinn
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    May 23rd 2021, 10:24 PM

    What if he has been detained for the fake alarm of bomb?

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    Mute Mick.
    Favourite Mick.
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    May 23rd 2021, 11:45 PM

    @Maria Quinn: You seem determined to try and deflect away from the Hijacking of a civilian plane by Belarus. Any particular reason for that?

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    Mute Paul Whitehead
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    May 24th 2021, 8:19 AM

    @Maria Quinn: he wasn’t-the fake bomb was made up by Belarus to get him to Minsk. Despicable evil and illegitimate regime.

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