"There is no moral distinction" between the Omagh bombers and the al-Qaeda terrorists who bombed the US on September 11th, singer Bob Geldof said yesterday.
Giving his support to victims of the Omagh bombing in their efforts to raise £1 million to pursue a civil action against five named suspects, Mr Geldof spoke at a press conference in the Irish Club of his "abiding shame" that people in Britain and Ireland had donated money to the US victims while the Omagh families struggled to raise funds.
The Omagh Victims' Legal Fund, established by the families to bring the action, has raised £500,000 but needs another £1 million within two months to bring the case by August, the deadline for a civil action.
Mr Geldof was joined at the press conference by relatives of the victims, the Northern Ireland First Minister and UUP leader, Mr David Trimble, former Northern Ireland secretary Mr Peter Mandelson, and former boxer Barry McGuigan.
Messages of support were read from the Deputy First Minister, Mr Mark Durkan, the Conservative leader, Mr Iain Duncan Smith, the former US president, Mr Bill Clinton, London Mayor Mr Ken Livingstone, and writer Ms Maeve Binchy.
In a plea for support, Mr Geldof said he was "humbled" by the misery the families and victims experienced on a daily basis. "Omagh was without doubt our September 11th; there is no moral difference in any sense."
"I am appalled by the lack of outpouring in both countries, in Britain and Ireland . . . there are an awful lot of very wealthy Irish people in this country and in Ireland and I can't understand why they can't fund it. I can't understand why people who aren't wealthy can't throw a few quid in the pot. It is necessary for us all to expunge this badge of shame that we wear."
He told The Irish Times that it was not a "lame convenience" to compare September 11th with Omagh. "The fathomless evil beggars belief. It is precisely the same as those people in that plane. It is not beyond the wit of man to chuck a couple of quid in an envelope and send it to those families."
Mr Trimble said there would be "no closure on this issue" unless people could be sure justice had been done and the "wickedness" of the bombers was marked by society.
Asked about Sir Ronnie Flanagan's refusal to remove the senior investigator on the Omagh inquiry, Mr Trimble said he did not want to discuss "operational matters".
Mr Mandelson, who has donated £10,000 to the fund, told the press conference there could be no "settled peace" in Northern Ireland without justice."It must be peace with justice, and the key to that is Omagh," he said.