Work underway to rebuild Belfast UVF mural blown down in Storm Darragh

The mural, situated at the entrance of the Mount Vernon estate, had been painted with two masked gunmen and the slogan: “Prepared For Peace, Ready For War.”

Among the iconography featured on the mural included paramilitary emblems synonymous with the UVF.

However, this was knocked down after it was subject to windspeeds in excess of 90mph from the storm.

Residents woke last December to find half of the wall toppled due to the gale force winds which left almost 50,000 people without power.

Now scaffolding surrounds what is left of the site as work begins to rebuild it.

It is unclear if the mural will be rebuilt to its original design or if something new will takes its place, with the wall currently appearing to be blank.

A number of paramilitary flags have also been affixed to the scaffolding.

Last year it was reported residents in the area were against the mural’s return because of the way it portrays their estate.

Sources told the Sunday World at the time there was opposition to the mural when it first went up.

“People thought it was time to move away from that stuff, the UVF had called a ceasefire and supposedly decommissioned, yet here they were saying they were ready to go back to war.

“Who were they going to war with? We’ve been saddled with it ever since, maybe Darragh has done us a favour and we can break away from the past.”

The mural was built in the former base of the Mount Vernon UVF unit which was led by the now jailed police informant Mark Haddock.

The former paramilitary boss was imprisoned in 2014 for wounding with intent after a knife attack on an associate.

He was tried at Woolwich Crown Court and is serving a 12-year sentence in an English Prison.

After a report conducted by Former Police Ombudsman Nuala Loan in 2007, she found that members of the Mount Vernon gang were working as special branch agents.

Loan also deduced that police had colluded with paramilitary members to protect them from arrest and prosecution.

Under the leadership of Haddock, the gang carried out a sectarian terror campaign which led to the murder of dozens.

News Catch Up - Friday 4th April

In 2005 Haddock was named in the Irish parliament by Labour TD Pat Rabbitte as an RUC Special Branch agent who had been involved in several murders including Sharon McKenna and Raymond McCord Jnr.