The Irish Republican Army claimed responsibility Friday for the killing of a British airman and his 6-month-old daughter in West Germany.
In a statement issued in Dublin, the guerrilla group expressed profound regret for the child's death and said its members were unaware of her presence when they opened fire.West German police are hunting two IRA gunmen after Royal Air Force Corporal Maheshkumar Islania and his daughter were shot Thursday in a car parked outside a gas station near the RAF base at Wildenrath.
Police said Islania, an Asian from Tanzania, had joined the RAF in 1974. and worked as a supervisor in the communications section.
His Bombay-born wife, Smita, 26, escaped unhurt but was taken to the hospital under severe shock.
Witnesses found her cradling the dead baby in her arms. "She refused to let it go. She sat wrapped in a blanket just clutching the little child. It was horrific," one witness said.
Irish politicians unanimously condemned the shootings.
Prime Minister Charles Haughey said in a statement, "All responsible people must be appalled by this callous act."
The IRA is battling to oust Britain from Northern Ireland.