Yahoo News Irish PM Leo Varadkar urged to help stop 'offensive and unacceptable' Brexit
Top figures from Northern Irish society have called on the Irish Prime Minister to help stop Brexit - warning that the UK's split from the European Union is "offensive and unacceptable".
In a letter sent to Leo Varadkar, more than 200 people from the world of sport, the arts, business, community work and the legal sector say Brexit "threatens to reinforce partition on this island".
The group wrote: "The fact that a majority of voters in the north of Ireland voted to remain within the EU must not be ignored.
"Against the stated will of a majority of voters in the north, and notwithstanding recent announcements, Brexit pushes us all into uncharted territory, with huge uncertainty for business and the economy, and continuing doubts about what this will mean in reality for Irish and European citizens living in this region.
"We, our children and grandchildren should not be forced out of the EU against our democratic will.
"All of this is offensive and unacceptable to us and many others."
The signatories include Republic of Ireland footballer James McClean - who was born in Northern Ireland - and Queen's University professor Phil Scraton, who campaigned for justice following the Hillsborough disaster in 1989.
Other names include Olympic boxers Michael Conlan and Paddy Barnes, as well as solicitor Darragh Mackin of KRW Law, who helped secure the release of Ibrahim Halawa from an Egyptian jail.
The letter, which was also sent to The Irish News in Belfast and The Irish Times in Dublin, goes on to criticise the political deadlock in Northern Ireland.
They say Prime Minister Theresa May's deal with Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party has become a serious threat to political progress.
The DUP backs Mrs May's minority government in key Commons votes following the loss of her majority in June's General Election.
The signatories add: "We appeal urgently to you, Taoiseach (Irish PM), and to the Irish government, to reassure us of your commitment to stand for equality and a human rights based society and your determination to secure and protect the rights of all citizens in the north of Ireland.
They claim that the institutions set up as part of the Good Friday Agreement have been consistently undermined in recent years because the governments in London and Dublin have taken a hands-off approach to the 1998 accord.
"Despite the British government's co-equal and internationally binding responsibility for overseeing the peace process with the Irish government, we have no confidence in its commitment to do so with impartiality or objectivity," they wrote.
