Memorial to terrorism victims killed overseas may be in North

A MEMORIAL TO to victims of the Tunisian terror attacks in 2015 may be built in the North of England, a Minister revealed.
An armed policeman on the beach near the RIU Imperial Marhaba hotel in Sousse, Tunisia, following last year's terrorist attack at the beach.An armed policeman on the beach near the RIU Imperial Marhaba hotel in Sousse, Tunisia, following last year's terrorist attack at the beach.
An armed policeman on the beach near the RIU Imperial Marhaba hotel in Sousse, Tunisia, following last year's terrorist attack at the beach.

Junior Foreign Office Minister Tobias Ellwood said the location would be decided after consultation with families of victims which included a number of people from Yorkshire.

But he said the fact that many of the victims were from the North of England meant it made sense to locate the memorial in that part of the country.

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Meanwhile, in a separate move, plans for a memorial for British victims of terrorism overseas is to be located at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.

The two memorials were announced by the Government after talks with families of victims of terrorism.

Mr Ellwood – whose brother Jonathan died in the 2002 Bali bombings – said: “This has been in the planning for some time. We want to dedicate a memorial to the victims of overseas terrorism. In these dangerous and unpredictable times, many families don’t have a grave for their loved ones because it hasn’t been possible to repatriate the bodies.”

The attack in Sousse in Tunisia was the worst incident of terrorism involving British citizens since the 7/7 attacks in London. Thirty Britons were among 38 holidaymakers killed by Seifeddine Rezgui on the beach, who was later shot dead by security forces. A Briton was also killed in an attack at the Bardo Museum in Tunisia in which 19 foreign tourists died.

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The beach victims included Bruce Wilkinson, from Goole, Claire Windass, from Hull, and Chris and Sharon Bell, from Leeds. Mr Ellwood said families of the victims were in favour of a memorial and that talks with local authorities would take place and a site in the North seemed to be a favoured option.

Meanwhile, the national memorial for British citizens killed in terror attacks overseas will be established by Summer 2017, the Prime Minister has announced today.

Speaking from the Nato summit in Warsaw, the Prime Minister said that the Memorial will be sited at the National Memorial Arboretum, part of the Royal British Legion,​ in Staffordshire.

It comes after the Prime Minister announced, in July last year, that a monument to honour victims of terrorist atrocities overseas would be built on British soil.

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A panel will now invite a small number of artists to submit proposals for the memorial, before selecting the final design. The panel, which will volunteer its time for free, is expected to be established by August.

A panel headed by former overseas development Minister Baroness Chalker will now be appointed to select an artist and design for the site.

Speaking before leaving the Nato summit in Warsaw, Mr Cameron said: “These memorials will be places where the family and friends of people killed in terrorist attacks can reflect and remember. By building them we are underlining our pledge to never forget the victims of these atrocities.”

Mike Haines, brother of Holderness-born David Haines a humanitarian worker who was murdered by so-called Islamic State in 2014, said: “The location of the National Memorial for Victims of Overseas Terrorism at the National Memorial Arboretum will give those families like mine, who have suffered the loss of a loved one, a place to come together to share our grief and good memories of the people we have lost.”

The costs of both memorials will be met from fines levied on banks by the Financial Conduct Authority.

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