Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) voiced scepticism about the authenticity of a photograph circulating online that allegedly shows an individual dressed as a Hamas fighter during the Halloween celebrations in Derry.
In a statement made on Thursday, Chief Superintendent Nigel Goddard said: “We have made a number of enquiries in relation to an image on social media purporting to show a person in Guildhall Square in Derry/Londonderry dressed in a uniform with ‘HAMAS’ spelt on the picture.”
The image has gained attention online over the days that followed and was shared by GB News contributor Arlene Foster.
Foster later appeared on the network to question why neither police nor attendees challenged the individual for “normalising terrorism.”
Backlash prompted the PSNI to launch an investigation. By Wednesday, the police confirmed their awareness of the photograph and said they were looking into its veracity.
Goddard continued: “These enquiries to establish if the image is genuine have included a public appeal and a check of city centre CCTV. As of today, Thursday 2 November, we have not had any reports of anyone seeing this person in Guildhall Square dressed in this way, or found any other images online.”
He continued, “At this time, and while I remain ‘open minded’, with the checks we have conducted, with no other sightings reported to us from members of the public, or from police officers on duty reporting seeing this person, I believe this is a fake
Earlier, Goddard had stated that the costume shown in the image “may constitute a criminal offence.”