OMAGH FAMILIES DESERVE TRUTH
Omagh families deserve truth
AFTER 10 years of the most intense scrutiny and close interest from detectives, solicitors, barristers, judges, journalists, politicians, bereaved relatives and the police ombudsman, it is hard to believe there is much left to discover about the Omagh bombing.
Certainly, the litany of failings in this case have been well documented. That the families of the bereaved and the grievously injured victims of this atrocity have been cruelly let down by the criminal justice system is not in doubt.
Now an investigation by BBC Panorama has revealed that on the day of the atrocity GCHQ was monitoring mobile phone calls made by the Real IRA bombers.
Crucially, this information was not relayed to the police at the time. Nor was it passed to the RUC when the hunt began for those responsible for the deaths of 29 people and unborn twins.
It is not known why this intelligence was withheld or who made the decision.
However, if the exchanges between the bombers had been monitored live, then it is possible efforts could have been made to thwart the bomb run.
After the device exploded the failure to disclose all relevant information potentially hobbled the investigation from the start.
These are serious issues and relatives, who have embarked on a civil action in their attempts to achieve redress, are to seek full disclosure of the surveillance material. There have also been calls for a public inquiry.
Of course, if the British government was open and transparent about all aspects of this case, no such inquiry would be necessary.
Even at this late stage the families should be told what the intelligence services knew. They deserve to be given the full truth, no matter how it reflects on agencies or governments.
AFTER 10 years of the most intense scrutiny and close interest from detectives, solicitors, barristers, judges, journalists, politicians, bereaved relatives and the police ombudsman, it is hard to believe there is much left to discover about the Omagh bombing.
Certainly, the litany of failings in this case have been well documented. That the families of the bereaved and the grievously injured victims of this atrocity have been cruelly let down by the criminal justice system is not in doubt.
Now an investigation by BBC Panorama has revealed that on the day of the atrocity GCHQ was monitoring mobile phone calls made by the Real IRA bombers.
Crucially, this information was not relayed to the police at the time. Nor was it passed to the RUC when the hunt began for those responsible for the deaths of 29 people and unborn twins.
It is not known why this intelligence was withheld or who made the decision.
However, if the exchanges between the bombers had been monitored live, then it is possible efforts could have been made to thwart the bomb run.
After the device exploded the failure to disclose all relevant information potentially hobbled the investigation from the start.
These are serious issues and relatives, who have embarked on a civil action in their attempts to achieve redress, are to seek full disclosure of the surveillance material. There have also been calls for a public inquiry.
Of course, if the British government was open and transparent about all aspects of this case, no such inquiry would be necessary.
Even at this late stage the families should be told what the intelligence services knew. They deserve to be given the full truth, no matter how it reflects on agencies or governments.
Further Information
Publisher: THE IRISH NEWS
Ref: IN/0959
Published Date: 17-Sep-08
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