Editorial: Child killings shock the entire nation

The deaths of four young children and two women and the death of the father of two of the children within 24 hours is impossibly difficult to fathom.

No matter what we hear about the circumstances, the possible 'reasons' or 'causes' in the weeks to come, it will be impossible to fully understand.

Circumstances like unemployment and depression may be at the root of such tragedies, but this does little to assuage the deep, unbearable grief.

For some too, the black events of yesterday will jog memories of similar painful events in the past pushing other families and communities to relive their grief.

Our heart-felt sympathy goes to the mother of the two Cork children, the families and friends of both the Cork and Limerick victims and the communities in which they lived.