Remembrance Sunday to be marked across Northern Ireland
Remembrance Sunday to be marked across Northern Ireland
Mike McBride - BBC News NI Sun, November 8, 2026 at 9:51 AM UTC
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Wreaths will be laid at several locations across Northern Ireland
Events and services are to take place in cities, towns and villages across Northern Ireland to mark Remembrance Sunday.
Belfast's ceremony will begin with a two-minute silence at 11:00 GMT.
Remembrance Sunday is observed on the second Sunday of November.
First Minister Michelle O'Neill and Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly will not be in attendance in their official capacities at remembrance events on Sunday following the fall out of the Drumcree parading dispute.
After the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) said it will not participate in joint engagements with O'Neill and Little-Pengelly, O'Neill then confirmed her invitation to attend Remembrance Sunday had been "blocked".
She accused her unionist partners in government of "short-sightedness", but the DUP has said the Sinn Féin vice-president's "arrogance will have consequences".
Two years ago, O'Neill became the first senior Sinn Féin figure to take part in an official Remembrance Sunday ceremony, laying a laurel wreath at the Cenotaph at Belfast City Hall.
Several Sinn Féin politicians have laid wreaths in previous years, but she was the first to stay for the main Remembrance Sunday ceremony.
O'Neill was asked by reporters if she would be attending Remembrance Sunday in a personal capacity if not as first minister.
The Sinn Féin deputy leader said the "invitation to Sunday was into the office of first and deputy first minister" and said it had been "blocked by the DUP".
The Lord Mayor of Belfast, Róis-Máire Donnelly of Sinn Féin, is due to attend and lay a wreath.
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Police are advising residents and motorists to anticipate delays and disruption to traffic on Sunday due to parades and other events taking places across Northern Ireland.
People are being urged to allow extra time for their journeys.
In County Fermanagh, the Taoiseach Michaél Martin will attend the Remembrance Sunday Service in Enniskillen.
Michaél Martin arrived at Enniskillen Presbyterian Church just before 10:00 GMT.
War memorial being rededicated
Work to restore the war memorial at The Diamond in Londonderry city centre began back in August
The war memorial in Londonderry is to be rededicated on Sunday for the first time since 1927, following the completion of a major restoration project.
The £200,000 restoration works on the memorial were completed ahead of Sunday's ceremony, with fencing to be removed before the rededication and a subsequent act of remembrance.
Specialist contractors have been undertaking extensive restoration work on four historic war memorials across Derry City and Strabane District Council area.
Jason Dougherty, chairman of the Royal British Legion in the Waterside, said the restoration work on the memorial in The Diamond has been incredible.
Extensive restoration works on the memorial in The Diamond, which was supported by EU funding, were to be completed ahead of Sunday's rededication ceremony
A rededication ceremony is traditionally held after a memorial has been renovated, modified, or moved.
Speaking to BBC Radio Foyle's North West Today ahead of Sunday, Dougherty said the improvements had been significant and were "a fitting and lasting tribute to our glorious dead".
Dougherty said the restoration work, which was supported by EU funding, has been hugely successful.
He said the memorial's prominent location in the Diamond in the city centre made its refurbishment particularly important, adding that the improvements had also enhanced the appearance of the surrounding area for the benefit of the wider community.
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