:00:08. > :00:09.The First Minister Peter Robinson has apologised to a Muslim
:00:10. > :00:12.delegation over remarks he made in defence of controversial Pastor
:00:13. > :00:19.A spokesman for the Belfast Islamic Centre said they accepted the
:00:20. > :00:22.First Ministers apology and they've invited him to visit the centre.
:00:23. > :00:35.This afternoon, a Muslim delegation went to Stormont Castle to meet the
:00:36. > :00:42.First Minister and Deputy first ministers separately over their
:00:43. > :00:46.recent remarks about Muslims. When Martin McGuinness emerged from his
:00:47. > :00:49.meeting, he said he was leaving the talking to Peter. Minutes later, he
:00:50. > :00:57.came out to explain how the meeting had gone. We had a very useful,
:00:58. > :01:01.valuable, friendly and relaxed meeting with the representatives
:01:02. > :01:05.from the Islamic community, an excellent opportunity for me to put
:01:06. > :01:11.into context my views on those matters and assure them that they
:01:12. > :01:15.are a valued part of our society in Northern Ireland, and die have been
:01:16. > :01:20.invited and have accepted an invitation to the Belfast Islamic
:01:21. > :01:27.Centre. -- and I'd have been invited. None of my remarks were
:01:28. > :01:31.meant to cause anyone any defence -- offence or distress, the last thing
:01:32. > :01:41.I've would have on my mind would be to cause hurts to anyone. He
:01:42. > :01:45.apologised to us in the meeting and I am personally satisfied with his
:01:46. > :01:51.apology. Do you think this is the whole issue puts to bed? Are you
:01:52. > :01:58.moving on? It is not the end of it. We discussed his visits to the
:01:59. > :02:02.Islamic Centre, to the wider community, and he has accepted
:02:03. > :02:18.enough -- and he has kindly accepted. What sort of place do we
:02:19. > :02:25.live in? I feel vulnerable. I'd feel vulnerable, walking on the street,
:02:26. > :02:31.because I know ethnic minorities... I know ethnic minorities have been
:02:32. > :02:37.attacked, and I'd feel wonderful that when I walk on the street that
:02:38. > :02:40.I've might be attacked. The First Minister and Deputy first ministers
:02:41. > :02:46.have also accepted an invitation to visit the as Lomic centre here in
:02:47. > :02:52.South bus passed -- the Islamic Centre here in south Belfast. This
:02:53. > :02:54.has been seen as progress by those involved in working to repair
:02:55. > :03:00.relations with Northern Ireland's Muslim community.
:03:01. > :03:03.The new Chief Constable is to be George Hamilton, who is currently
:03:04. > :03:07.The Policing Board made the announcement after interviews
:03:08. > :03:13.Our Home Affairs Correspondent Vincent Kearney reports.
:03:14. > :03:21.29 years after joining as a constable, George Hamilton was today
:03:22. > :03:25.selected to lead the organisation that replaced his. He is expected to
:03:26. > :03:31.take up in late July or August, in which point the current Chief
:03:32. > :03:40.Constable will step down. He is regarded as highly capable and
:03:41. > :03:50.popular with officers on the ground full top -- the ground.
:03:51. > :03:53.The police have been dealing with a number of security alerts
:03:54. > :03:57.Sloan Street is closed this evening as Army experts examine a suspicious
:03:58. > :04:01.Earlier, controlled explosions were carried out on a stolen vehicle and
:04:02. > :04:05.an object brought to the city's PSNI station by a member of the public
:04:06. > :04:18.Two men jailed for murdering Constable Stephen Carroll five years
:04:19. > :04:20.ago have lost their appeal against their convictions.
:04:21. > :04:23.Three appeal court judges today said there was compelling evidence that
:04:24. > :04:25.Brendan McConville and John Paul Wootton were guilty,
:04:26. > :04:33.Our Home Affairs Correspondent Vincent Kearney reports.
:04:34. > :04:38.Constable Stephen Carroll was responding to an emergency call when
:04:39. > :04:42.he was shot dead in March of 2009. Brendan McConville was sentenced to
:04:43. > :04:48.25 years in jail, and John Paul Wootton on a minimum of 14 years
:04:49. > :04:52.before the murder. Lawyers for both men appealed the convictions,
:04:53. > :04:57.claiming they were unsafe. Much of the original court case hinged on
:04:58. > :05:03.evidence from a man referred to as witness Emma. He claimed he had been
:05:04. > :05:05.out for a walk and assault Brendan McConville standing just yards from
:05:06. > :05:11.where police say the fatal shots were fired to stop during the appeal
:05:12. > :05:15.hearings, it defence lawyers tried to undermine the credibility of the
:05:16. > :05:20.witness, this writing him as a Walter midi, who regularly made up
:05:21. > :05:29.stories and told lies. Those claims were made up by his own father. He
:05:30. > :05:35.cannot be named for legal reasons and has been referred to as a
:05:36. > :05:39.witnesses said. The court heard that the evidence
:05:40. > :05:46.did not render the convictions unsafe in any way. The judges also
:05:47. > :05:48.touched on circumstantial evidence, saying that they believed there was
:05:49. > :05:54.a compelling case that the two men were guilty.
:05:55. > :06:00.Stephen Carroll's widow was in courts to hear the ruling. It has
:06:01. > :06:05.been a long journey. I've have been here for a second time, and thank
:06:06. > :06:10.God it is over. We can move on as a family and I want to thank everybody
:06:11. > :06:13.who supported me. Members of the family of Brendan McConville and
:06:14. > :06:19.John Paul Wootton left court shortly after without speaking to the media.
:06:20. > :06:22.A senior lawyer has said The Historical Institutional Abuse
:06:23. > :06:24.Inquiry will have to consider possible failings by state agencies
:06:25. > :06:27.linked to two former residential homes run by nuns in Londonderry.
:06:28. > :06:30.Public hearings into children's homes run by the
:06:31. > :06:32.Sisters of Nazareth at Termonbacca and Bishop Street, have now ended.
:06:33. > :06:47.The inquiry has heard evidence from dozens of witnesses. Sometimes
:06:48. > :06:52.harrowing testimony from some of her residence claiming abuse at the
:06:53. > :06:57.homes, and some defending the nuns in the care they provided. Today,
:06:58. > :07:01.final submissions from legal representatives. Christine Smith QC
:07:02. > :07:06.reminded the court that they would have to consider evidence by some
:07:07. > :07:11.older boys and from visitors to the two homes, including some priests,
:07:12. > :07:16.but she says that the issue of state responsibility for children placed
:07:17. > :07:18.in the care of these homes, and to ensure that all institutions
:07:19. > :07:24.maintained proper standards in the care of children. The counsellor for
:07:25. > :07:31.the Sisters of Nazareth also offered a closing submission. This has
:07:32. > :07:35.certainly divided opinions. The congregation does not shirk its
:07:36. > :07:40.responsibility or run away from its culpability. There was also a
:07:41. > :07:45.description of how former residence was spotted to criticism of nuns in
:07:46. > :07:49.the early weeks of the inquiry, who came to write a terrible wrong. The
:07:50. > :07:54.next phase of the inquiry will begin in September.
:07:55. > :07:57.In football, the Republic's manager Martin O'Neill has confirmed that
:07:58. > :07:59.his assistant Roy Keane has held informal talks with Celtic
:08:00. > :08:05.But he said he didn't know how the situation would develop.
:08:06. > :08:13.It is a very big job, obviously, and those kind of offers might not come
:08:14. > :08:25.around, but as we speak now at this minute, I've am really unsure. Let's
:08:26. > :08:30.get a look at the weather. Better things are on the way. We have a few
:08:31. > :08:36.showers continuing overnight and it is quite a cloudy night.
:08:37. > :08:39.Temperatures of staying reasonably mild in the towns and cities and a
:08:40. > :08:45.little bit cooler in some rural areas. Going into tomorrow, better
:08:46. > :08:49.things ahead. The cloudy but certainly it will be warmer as we go
:08:50. > :08:53.through the day. Still a deal of cloud around to start with in
:08:54. > :08:56.particular, but I think we will see much better temperatures through the
:08:57. > :08:59.day, and the reason for that for that is that the low pressure that
:09:00. > :09:04.has been given us all those -- all that rain will sink to the south and
:09:05. > :09:08.we will have some more settled conditions, and that is reflected
:09:09. > :09:11.right across the UK and Ireland, much better temperatures in the
:09:12. > :09:16.light wind meaning it will be quite a pleasant day. If you catch a
:09:17. > :09:19.brighter spell, it will be very nice. A few showers popping up
:09:20. > :09:23.through the afternoon, but they will be few and far to dream, and the
:09:24. > :09:28.temperatures are looking quite healthy, up into the middle teens.
:09:29. > :09:32.The upward trend in the temperatures will carry on into the weekend.
:09:33. > :09:38.Saturday is looking pretty good indeed, up to around 19 degrees, and
:09:39. > :09:40.a good deal more brightness around as a good deal more brightness
:09:41. > :09:44.around as we go through Saturday afternoon. It is definitely the
:09:45. > :09:49.better day of gets a change coming in Saturday night into Sunday, so
:09:50. > :09:53.make the most of what promises to be a pleasant couple of days.
:09:54. > :09:58.You can keep up to date with News Online and follow this