Former US president Bill Clinton quoted the late journalist Lyra McKee in a speech in Derry on Tuesday, the fourth anniversary of her death.
He returned to the city he famously brought to a standstill in the 1990s in what was the first ever US Presidential visit to Derry.
In a keynote address at an event in the Guildhall honouring the late John Hume and David Trimble, the former president quoted Lyra McKee as he urged the mostly youthful audience to "say goodbye to bombs and bullets once and for all."
Read more: Bill Clinton to return to Derry for event to honour John Hume and David Trimble
There were other tributes to Lyra McKee during the event, which also featured musical performances from Derry-born singer songwriter Neil Hannon, Tim Wheeler from Ash, local artist Roe and Phil Coulter.
Ash frontman Tim Wheeler dedicated a performance of Shining Light to Ms McKee, who was shot dead in Derry on April 18, 2019, as she observed rioting in the Creggan estate.
U2 star Bono also delivered a video message paying tribute to Hume and Trimble at the event attended by the Fine Gael deputy leader Simon Coveney, SDLP leader Colum Eastwood, former UUP leader Mike Nesbitt, and Sinn Fein MLAs Padraig Delargy and Ciara Ferguson.
In a wide ranging speech that touched on everything from the magnificent ruins of Petra in the Jordanian desert, the human genome, the number of galaxies in the universe, the Rwandan genocide, and the Trojan war, the former President said he often thought of the "Ireland conflict" as he dealt with the myriad issues he faced during his time as president.
Mr Clinton described the Good Friday Agreement as a "gift" that lifted "our lives, our children's lives and our grandchildren's lives".
He continued: "Thank you everyone at the Hume Foundation for the genuinely important work, and I want to thank particularly all of you for the dedication of the song to Lyra McKee on the fourth anniversary of her death.
"We owe it to her to choose, in her words, to say goodbye to bombs and bullets once and for all.
"This audience is made up mostly of people who are younger than her. You will decide what to do."
Following the event in the Guildhall, Bill Clinton visited a local bar where he met with Foyle MP and SDLP leader Colum Eastwood.
He spoke with a number of people in the Taphouse and posed for selfies on request.
Emerging outside to be greeted by more crowds of well wishers, Mr Clinton took time to speak to several people before getting into his waiting vehicle to leave.
Irish Enterprise Minister Simon Coveney, speaking to Belfast Live outside the Taphouse, said: "People came together today to recognise two extraordinary individuals and politicians in David Trimble and John Hume. Without those two individuals we wouldn't have a peace process.
"The reason so many people mentioned Lyra McKee today is that in many ways she represents a generation post the peace process who was demanding a better future for the people of Northern Ireland.
"What happened to her made a lot of people very angry that something like that could still happen. It, I hope, motivated people to work harder to make peace work. Her influence is still very strong today and I hope that is felt across this city in particular."
READ NEXT:
- Derry Girls writer urges public votes for BAFTA TV award
- People Before Profit urges voters to 'strike back' as party launches NI council election manifesto
- Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pays tribute to Lyra McKee on fourth anniversary of her death
- Derry hotel included on 'best places to stay' list before it even opened its doors
