Londonderry PSNI feared Shantallow call-out may have been dissident ambush

District Commander Chief Superintendent Stephen Martin said: "I would like to take this opportunity to speak to the residents of Foyle and in particular the community in Shantallow and reassure them that the police officers who serve your community on a daily basis remain committed to providing you with the professional, personal and protective service you deserve.

"I know that many of you are disappointed with our response to the incident in Slievemore Park last Wednesday evening but due to concerns that this call may have been an attempt to lure police officers into the area to attack them, officers were unable to respond as fully or as quickly as they would have wished.

"We always have to establish the circumstances and authenticity of any call and I am sorry that the community feels let down but I have to consider the security of my officers when sending them out to any scene.

"The safety of officers and the public is a priority for the PSNI and there are unfortunately some situations which may have to be dealt with cautiously due to the significant threat from terrorists, who have shown their determination to kill officers.

"It is unfortunate these measures have to be considered but that is the reality of policing in Northern Ireland where a small minority of people are determined to bring us back to the dark days of the past.

"The officers who police your community are also disappointed that they were prevented from responding as quickly as they wanted to because of a few people's determination to kill them.

"But I am sure the public will understand that the primary target for misguided republicans is police officers.

"Police are committed to investigating this incident but we have an over-riding responsibility to protect and preserve life, and that includes the lives of our own officers.

"Anyone who has information about this incident is asked to contact police at Strand Road on 0845 600 8000."

Shantallow resident and SDLP Foyle MLA Mary Bradley earlier joined a chorus calling for the police to explain their "poor response to an attack on a family in the Slievemore Park area of Derry on Wednesday night."

She said: "Firstly I want to deplore this abhorrent attack on a family in Slievemore Park whereby armed and masked men detained a man in his own living room as his young child slept upstairs.

"Fortunately the family managed to escape uninjured in what must have been a traumatic experience. However, when the victim contacted the police he was told that officers were unable to attend the scene.

"This is totally unacceptable and has caused outrage within the local community. The police should have acted promptly and been responsive to this attack in what is a close-knit residential area.

"I will be raising this issue with the Police Ombudsman and will be seeking a meeting with local PSNI officials to get some answers on this unsatisfactory response by the police."