Counsel to the Bloody Sunday Inquiry, Mr Christopher Clarke QC, was today accused of effectively blowing the cover of Official IRA men seeking anonymity to testify at the hearings.
The claim was made by barrister Mr Richard Harvey who also alleged events at the inquiry yesterday may have a "chilling effect" on efforts to draw out other potential IRA witnesses.
His comments came after Mr Clarke questioned journalist Mr Eamon McCann about three men named in his book War And An Irish Townand alleged in it to have become members of the Official IRA.
Mr Clarke said it appeared two of them were people who had made an application for anonymity to the tribunal.
Mr Harvey said: "In doing so in our submission he has effectively made pointless any application for anonymity by those two individuals.
"Any person who wishes to establish their identities has only to read Mr McCann's book and he will have a two out of three chance of guessing correctly."
Earlier inquiry chairman Lord Saville announced the tribunal would not be seeking the names of those who might have been involved with the IRA on Bloody Sunday from Mr McCann "for the time being", citing concerns about prejudicing "genuine claims for anonymity".
Mr McCann yesterday refused to identify IRA men in either the Official or Provisional wings and only said he no longer believed Sinn Fein's Mr Martin McGuinness was the OC of the Provisionals on Bloody Sunday.
Mr Harvey, who represents the family of Mr Jim Wray (22), one of the 13 men killed when Paratroopers opened fire on January 30th 1972, said today: "One of the reasons he gave for not wishing to name names yesterday was that a number of these people are already in the process of speaking to the officials of the tribunal.
"At the very moment when it appeared that the families' appeal for people to come forward was bearing fruit, two of these witnesses who are in the process of speaking to the tribunal officials about anonymity have in effect had their anonymity outed.
"We continue to hold out the hope that all others will come forward and we must place on record our concern that yesterday's proceedings may have had a chilling effect on the willingness of others to do so."
PA