Relatives of those killed in the Omagh bomb today said they had moved one step closer towards justice following the serving of writs on men suspected of being involved in the attack.
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Solicitor Jason McHugh tries to serve a writ on behalf of the Omagh bomb families.
Photo: PA |
Lawyers acting for some of the families earlier began the process of serving writs on five men suspected of planning and carrying out the August 1998 Real IRA attack which killed 29 people, including a woman pregnant with twins.
A spokesman for the Omagh Victims Legal Trust welcomed the move. "We are one step closer to justice today, a step nearer seeing in court those who are suspected of murdering 31 innocent people in Omagh," he said.
"We could not have reached this point without the generosity of the public throughout the world.
"No thank you is enough to repay their kindness. They are helping us send a signal to the terrorists - justice will have its day."
Writs were served earlier today on two of the five people the families are taking to court in a landmark civil action.
Lawyers acting for the Omagh Victims Legal Trust served the writs in Dundalk, Co Louth, at 6.45am.
One writ was handed to a relative and the other was put through a letter box.
Lawyers and relatives were on their way to Portlaoise Prison more than 100 miles south to serve writs on three more men who are being held there.
Relatives learned yesterday that the Omagh Victims Legal Trust had raised the more than £1 million necessary to lodge their legal action.
So far only one man in the Republic has been convicted of charges connected with the bombing.
Last August, on the eve of the third anniversary of the bombing, solicitors acting for the families issued writs in the High Court in Belfast and had 12 months to serve them on the men named.
The writs claim "damages (including aggravated damages and/or exemplary damages) as a result of the explosion of a bomb at Omagh town centre on 15 August 1998 for which the defendants and each of them are responsible".
It is the first time alleged paramilitaries have been sued.
The writs also demand damages for "the intentional infliction of harm, trespass to the person and/or conspiracy to commit trespass to the person and/or conspiracy to injure".
PA