Journalists ordered to appear before Saville

Two TV journalists who could be jailed for refusing to name soldiers interviewed anonymously about Bloody Sunday were ordered…

Two TV journalists who could be jailed for refusing to name soldiers interviewed anonymously about Bloody Sunday were ordered today to appear again at the Saville Inquiry.

In May 2002, Lord Saville ordered the pair to name soldiers they interviewed for Britain's Channel 4 News.

Channel 4 correspondent Mr Alex Thomson and his former producer Ms Lena Ferguson - who now works for the BBC in Belfast -  told the tribunal they could not reveal the soldiers' identities as they had guaranteed their confidentiality.

Today ITN, which produces Channel 4 News, issued a statement saying the two journalists had been recalled to give evidence to the inquiry for a second time, and their names later appeared on the tribunal's witness list for January 26th.

READ MORE

"Lena Ferguson, Alex Thomson and ITN will continue to refuse to disclose the identity of the confidential sources," said the statement from the London-based television news company.

The journalists could find themselves facing a prison term for contempt of court if they fail to comply with an order from the inquiry.

Channel 4 News conducted anonymous interviews with five soldiers present on Bloody Sunday as part of a series of reports screened between January 1997 and January 1998.

Three of the soldiers have since agreed to give their own evidence to the inquiry, but two remain anonymous.