Those bereaved and injured in the 1998 Omagh bombing wish to use the inquiry “to heap shame on the Government of the Republic of Ireland for their failures,” their legal representative has said.
Delivering an opening statement to the inquiry on Tuesday, Alan Kane KC said those he represented were “sick and tired of platitudes, false assurances, broken promises and empty words from the State authorities of the Republic of Ireland.
“Their resolute refusal to institute a parallel inquiry, and their ongoing failure to provide real and meaningful co-operation with this inquiry speaks far louder than their words,” he said.
“One of our clients’ main areas of significant concern … is the responsibility of the Government of the Republic of Ireland and their State authorities to have prevented the Omagh bomb.”
Remembering Omagh: ‘There were stories we couldn’t write because they were too horrific’
Omagh bombing bereaved wish to use inquiry to ‘heap shame’ on Irish Government over ‘failures’
The stories of the Omagh bomb victims: from unborn twins to community stalwarts
Slow ‘pace of disclosure’ leads to Omagh bombing inquiry delay
Speaking on behalf of the families of seven victims of the bombing: Debra Ann Cartwright; Olive Hawkes; Julia Hughes; Mena Skelton; Samantha McFarland; Alan Radford; Lorraine Wilson; and a number of the injured, Mr Kane said they were “of the clear belief that whatever aspects of preventability may lie at the door of the UK state authorities, blame to a greater or lesser extent rests with the State authorities in the Republic of Ireland.”
He renewed their call for a parallel inquiry “to be immediately established by the Government of the Republic of Ireland, a call that they should not be required to repeat”.
The barrister was also strongly critical of the memorandum of understanding agreed between the State and the inquiry in April, which sets out working arrangements to cover the disclosure of materials.
Mr Kane said his clients “remain greatly disappointed at the lack of any commitment on the part of the authorities in the Republic of Ireland to meaningfully assist this inquiry”. He said they regard the memorandum of understanding agreed with the Republic’s Minister of Justice as wholly unsatisfactory.
It was, he said, a “cynical effort to appear to be assisting and co-operating and to alleviate the pressure of the commencement of this inquiry on themselves,” adding, “they grasped this opportunity of a fig leaf”.
The inquiry chair, Lord Turnbull, said these were “understandable concerns” and he had “no doubt the more strongly worded and sceptical remarks ... were formulated through the lens of long previous experience.”
But, without this, he was allowed “the luxury of an open mind” and he therefore took “the various assurances which have repeatedly been made by senior members of the government of Ireland at face value, and I assume they are made in good faith.”
A total of 31 people, including unborn twins, died and hundreds were injured when a car bomb planted by the dissident republican group the Real IRA exploded in the centre of Omagh on August 15th, 1998.
The inquiry into the bombing, which opened in the Co Tyrone town in 2024, was ordered by the UK government to examine whether the atrocity could reasonably have been prevented by British state authorities.
It followed a high court judgement in 2021 which found it was potentially plausible the bombing could have been prevented and recommended the UK government should carry out a human rights-compliant investigation into alleged security failures in the lead-up to the attack.
The judge said he did not have the power to compel a similar inquiry in the Republic of Ireland, but urged the State to establish its own investigation.
Ireland has not done so, but has repeatedly stressed its commitment to assisting and supporting the inquiry.
Mr Kane said his clients consider “there is a moral, human and legal imperative on the Government of the Republic of Ireland to establish a parallel inquiry into the deaths of people who were their own citizens, visitors to their country, and those who would have been entitled to Irish citizenship under their laws.
[ The stories of the Omagh bomb victims: from unborn twins to community stalwartsOpens in new window ]
Responding to the comments in Dublin, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he would reject the suggestion there had been a lack of commitment from the Irish authorities to assist the inquiry.
“ “That’s not a fair comment,” he said. “We have reached an accommodation with the chairman of the tribunal, we have reached a memorandum of understanding and we’re very, very committed to co-operating fully with the inquiry and making material available to the inquiry.”
Earlier this year, the inquiry heard four weeks of emotional testimony from bereaved relatives who delivered pen portraits of their loved ones, as well as from the injured and first responders.
It resumed on Monday to hear opening statements from core participants to the inquiry.
Core participants include the bereaved and injured and state authorities such as Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) and the Northern Secretary, representing the UK government.
During the two-day session the inquiry also heard concerns from bereaved families that the politics of the peace process had influenced the official approach to security in 1998.
Concerns raised on Monday over the speed and thoroughness of the disclosure of materials to the inquiry - which means it will cannot begin examining the bombing itself until March 2026 - by the UK state authorities were reiterated by family barristers on Tuesday.
The next hearing will take place on July 21st.
