Families 'put on back burner' by Dublin over bombing inquiry

A man whose wife was killed in the 1998 Omagh bombing has said families feel "put on the back burner" following an agreement by the Irish government to co-operate with an inquiry into the attack.

Stanley McCombe, whose wife Ann was one of those who died, said families had "no meetings with the Republic in over two years".

The Irish government announced a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Tuesday which allows the inquiry to access material it holds.

However families have said there has been a lack of consultation, with a lawyer who represents many of them saying they have requested a formal meeting with the Irish government.

The DUP leader Gavin Robinson described the agreement as a "slap in the face" and accused the Irish government of "obfuscating their responsibility".

Meanwhile, Sinn Féin's John Finucane said the move by the Irish government is an "advancement from where we were" but said families must be heard.

Twenty-nine people, including a woman expecting twins, died in the 1998 Real IRA attack, which was carried out from the Irish Republic.

An Irish government minister said he hopes cooperation with the Omagh bombing inquiry will "seek the answers that so many relatives need from all the victims".

Irish minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Peter Burke, said the government "draws a commitment to the memorandum of understanding for strong cooperation and support that is enshrined in our programme for government with the Omagh inquiry to ensure that it gets the best possible opportunity and cooperation between our government to seek the answers that so many relatives need from all the victims that are there".

Mr McCombe told BBC Radio Foyle's North West Today that families were glad the Irish government had "come this far" but that it will not do any good "unless they support the inquiry team in all the information that they require".

"We will definitely need to have witnesses from An Garda Síochána and whatever security agencies are in the Republic of Ireland," he said.

He added there was still a lot of questions to be asked and that he, and others, have had very little contact with the Irish government in the last decade.

"So many taoisigh (Irish prime ministers), have promised us over the years that Omagh will get to the truth, but we aren't having any truth and it's very degrading.

"We have been put on the backburner and they are talking among themselves."

On Tuesday, Michael Gallagher, whose son Aiden died in the bombing, welcome the Irish government's engagement but said it was "a huge opportunity missed" that it did not meet with Omagh families while working on the memorandum of understanding.

John Fox, a lawyer who represents 14 of the bereaved families and 10 survivors including Mr McCombe, said the move from the Irish government is "long-awaited" but it is still unclear how this will work in practice.

"The agreement makes clear this is not legally binding for various reasons and complexities, given that you are dealing with two jurisdictions," he told North West Today.

Mr Fox said none of his clients were consulted on the drafting of this engagement, but have now formally requested a meeting with the Irish government.

He said there was "a huge opportunity missed" regarding looking at the actions of Irish state agencies as the government are not permitting that "at this stage".

The DUP leader Gavin Robinson told the BBC's Good Morning Ulster programme on Wednesday that he thinks the agreement is "shameful, in that it masquerades as co-operation".

He said the MoU only has the scope to "partially answer" questions that the Irish government has in terms of its role in the bombing.

"This is a gaslighting exercise of the victims of Omagh," he said.

"There is nothing within the MoU that looks at what steps the Irish authorities could have taken to prevent the atrocity.

"Families deserve much more from the Irish government, who have a duty to look at their own actions, not assist in answering questions around the actions of the UK state."

Sinn Féin's John Finucane said the overriding objective should be "full transparency and disclosure about the killings that is capable of delivering for the families".

He said that while the agreement with the Irish government is an advancement of where we were, families have said that they need to study this clearly.

"If there are criticisms, then it must be strengthened.

"It is key that families are consulted, informed and listened to," he said.

Finucane described it as a "huge mistake that they [victims' families] weren't consulted in this process".