The video, posted on Tuesday and shared on Conservative Party platforms and Badenoch's X account, showed soldiers entering the Bogside area of Londonderry on 30 January 1972. Thirteen people were shot dead when the Army opened fire on civil rights demonstrators. At least 15 others were injured. In 2010, the Saville Inquiry found that none of the casualties posed a threat. Prime Minister David Cameron later described the killings as 'unjustified and unjustifiable'. In October 2025, a former Paratrooper known as Soldier F was found not guilty of murder and attempted murder.
The Conservative Party spokesman said: 'We apologise for the inclusion of this material, which should not have been used and will not be used again.' In the video, Badenoch said the government's planned reforms would see veterans 'dragged back into court' and 'put elderly veterans through fresh legal battles at the end of their lives'. She added: 'This is not justice. Britain should stand behind our veterans, not put them on trial decades later.' According to BBC News - UK, SDLP leader Colum Eastwood described the video as 'disgusting, disgraceful and an insult' to the innocent protesters. Tony Doherty, chair of the Bloody Sunday Trust, said he was astounded the footage had been used and called it grossly insulting.
We apologise for the inclusion of this material, which should not have been used and will not be used again.
It is disgusting, disgraceful and it is an insult to the innocent civil rights protesters.
I am shocked, frankly, that Kemi Badenoch has posted a video trumpeting the service of British soldiers in Northern Ireland using footage from Bloody Sunday.
He should apologise directly to the Bloody Sunday families and acknowledge that the politics of prioritising the interests of soldiers over the needs of victims is wrong.
The Conservatives' promotional video was entirely about elevating the interests of British soldiers over the needs of victims