CHILDREN USED A BOMB COVER - CLAIM
Children used as bomb cover - claim
THREE young boys may have been used by the Omagh bombers to deflect attention away from them as they drove into Market Street with their deadly cargo in August 1998, it was claimed this week.
It has been alleged that the terrorists may have used the children in the back seat of a 'scout car' sent ahead of the bomb car to help the bombers slip past any possible security checkpoints on their way into the town.
The claim comes hot on the heels of allegations last week that senior Garda officers in the Republic had allowed the car bomb to come north and that police here had actually received four warnings of terrorist activity and not just two, as had been previously acknowledged.
To date none of the allegations have specifically said there was a warning that Omagh was to be the target for a car bomb on the day in question.
The Chief Constable, Hugh Orde, was due to make a statement late yesterday afternoon (Wednesday) on a new report into Special Branch activities.
The latest claims have been that at least two cars were used by the bomb team. One carried the bomb, and the other was the scout car.
It has been claimed that three young boys were in the back of a car driven by a man police believe could have been scouting for the terrorist gang, and that they were spotted parked on a grass verge on the outskirts of Omagh just hours before the Real IRA bomb exploded in Market Street.
THREE young boys may have been used by the Omagh bombers to deflect attention away from them as they drove into Market Street with their deadly cargo in August 1998, it was claimed this week.
It has been alleged that the terrorists may have used the children in the back seat of a 'scout car' sent ahead of the bomb car to help the bombers slip past any possible security checkpoints on their way into the town.
The claim comes hot on the heels of allegations last week that senior Garda officers in the Republic had allowed the car bomb to come north and that police here had actually received four warnings of terrorist activity and not just two, as had been previously acknowledged.
To date none of the allegations have specifically said there was a warning that Omagh was to be the target for a car bomb on the day in question.
The Chief Constable, Hugh Orde, was due to make a statement late yesterday afternoon (Wednesday) on a new report into Special Branch activities.
The latest claims have been that at least two cars were used by the bomb team. One carried the bomb, and the other was the scout car.
It has been claimed that three young boys were in the back of a car driven by a man police believe could have been scouting for the terrorist gang, and that they were spotted parked on a grass verge on the outskirts of Omagh just hours before the Real IRA bomb exploded in Market Street.
Further Information
Publisher: TYRONE CONSTITUTION
Ref: TC/1127
Published Date: 07-Nov-02
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