The suggestion that there were unknown casualties of Bloody Sunday, including some who were buried in secret, was addressed by Mr Christopher Clarke QC, counsel to the Saville inquiry, during his closing statement yesterday.
Mr Clarke said the inquiry would have to determine if there were additional casualties, among them armed men and nail bombers, to the 27 people who were shot by British troops on Bloody Sunday.
He said many witnesses, both civilian and military, had reported seeing casualties who did not match the description of Official or Provisional IRA members who were acknowledged to have fired on the day.
"It will be for the tribunal to determine, as far as it can, how many of these reported sightings are reliable and to form a view of the number, if any, of unidentified gunmen and bombers who were present on the day, and of the number of dead or wounded individuals whose names are not known," he said.
Mr Clarke said the inquiry would also have to consider the evidence of a British military intelligence officer, who asserted that some of the soldiers had assumed the targets they'd shot were taken across the Border.
"It is acknowledged by civilian and paramilitary witnesses that medical treatment for wounded casualties, both civilian and paramilitary, was available both within the no-go areas, and in the Republic. The tribunal has not however discovered any evidence to suggest that any unidentified casualties were treated in Letterkenny or in Carndonagh hospitals in Donegal.
"The soldiers have submitted that the evidence obtained does not enable the tribunal to exclude the possibility that unknown individuals were treated in the Republic for gunshot wounds.
"It has been suggested on behalf of some of the soldiers that secret burials may have taken place of casualties who died and whose deaths have not been acknowledged.
"Of that, the tribunal has received a substantial amount of civilian evidence, including that of Bishop [ Edward] Daly as well as that from the republican movement, that such burials could not have occurred.
"If the tribunal accepts that evidence, then a finding that no unknown casualties were killed on Bloody Sunday would seem to follow."
Mr Clarke also dealt with the co-operation by people who were members of either the Provisional or Official IRA on Bloody Sunday.
He said 14 Provisional IRA witnesses gave evidence and the Official IRA command staff made a statement.
"Some have alleged that members of both wings of the IRA co-operated with the inquiry at a late stage and to a limited extent. Their submission is that the IRA's conduct reveals an intention to orchestrate the evidence of members and to prevent the tribunal from discovering the full truth about IRA activities on the day," he said.
"Whilst it is undoubtedly true that many paramilitary witnesses did not come forward of their own accord, the vast majority of those who were approached by the inquiry co-operated once contact had been made. The inquiry's resources are limited, and it took several months for the statement-taking process to be completed.
"The tribunal might, therefore, consider the fact that many IRA witnesses did not volunteer to give evidence at an early stage does not necessarily indicate they had something to hide about their activities on Bloody Sunday.
"It could reflect the fact their republican views made them unwilling to co-operate with the tribunal established by the British government and perceived to be British, despite its international membership," Mr Clarke said.