Row over whether Omagh bomb could have been prevented dominates 20th anniversary

Row over whether Omagh bomb could have been prevented dominates 20th anniversary

The 20th anniversary of the Omagh bomb has been marked in what is expected to be the final large public memorial event related to the atrocity.

However, the day was dominated by a row between Northern Ireland’s police chief and the former police ombudsman over whether the incident could have been prevented.

Crowds gathered in the Co Tyrone town on Wednesday afternoon at the exact moment 20 years on from when the dissident republican bomb caused devastation.

It was the greatest single loss of life during the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

A bell tolled 32 times, once for each of the victims as well as a final ring for all the victims of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

A priest who helped bereaved families at the time of the bomb challenged those responsible to return and reflect on what they had done.

Father Kevin Mullan said he felt that 20 years on, at what was expected to be the final large public gathering in memory of the victims, was the right time to speak out.

People gather on Market Street, Omagh
People gather on Market Street, Omagh (Niall Carson/PA)

It came days after the last public event at the Memorial Garden in Omagh on Sunday.

In future years, the bereaved will instead mark the anniversary privately.

However, the day was dominated by a war of words between former police ombudsman Nuala O’Loan and Police Service of Northern Ireland Chief Constable George Hamilton.

Baroness O’Loan called for a public inquiry into the bombing and seriously questioned the handling of security force intelligence.

She said: “My view now is that it could have been prevented.”

Baroness O’Loan said the various intelligence services could have worked in a more cohesive way.

Fr Kevin Mullan at the ceremony
Fr Kevin Mullan at the ceremony (Niall Carson/PA)

“I consider this comment to be inaccurate, unfair and unreasonable,” he said.

“Police were not in a position to prevent the Omagh bombing.”

Ulster Unionist leader Robin Swann also criticised Baroness O’Loan.

“The blame for this atrocity lies at the feet of those who planned, made and delivered the bomb to Omagh,” he said.

“It is regrettable that the former police ombudsman Nuala O’Loan has chosen today of all days to make her controversial comments when the focus should be solely on the families and not her.”

But the former police ombudsman stood over her claim.

Nuala O'Loan
Nuala O’Loan (Niall Carson/PA)

“It doesn’t come easy to me to say this, I feel profoundly saddened, but I think that if you have a view which is informed by experience of investigation, of systems, then you do have certain duties and I think it was incumbent on me to say this,” she said.

Meanwhile, Alliance Party leader Naomi Long paid tribute to the bereaved families, praising their dignity.

“Many of the families still have unanswered questions about the events of that day. Today I restate my belief that they should have the opportunity to obtain the answers they seek and to find peace after all these years,” she said.

The massive car bomb ripped through Omagh just months after the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement was supposed to have largely ended violence.

A splinter dissident republican group opposed to the peace process, the Real IRA, was blamed for the carnage after inaccurate warnings meant police evacuated shoppers towards the bomb site.

Twenty years later, nobody has been convicted of murder.

The victims included Protestants and Catholics, tourists from Spain and others on a day trip from the nearby Republic of Ireland.

One of the biggest police manhunts in history unfolded, but criticism of the police investigation led to unfulfilled calls for a public inquiry.

Chairman of the Police Federation for Northern Ireland, Mark Lindsay, said: “Baroness O’Loan has taken to the media to voice her assertions without providing a shred of evidence to back them up.

“That makes her contribution of questionable value.

“Worse than that, she has chosen the 20th anniversary of the worst terrorist atrocity in the history of the Northern Ireland ‘Troubles’ to contradict her own findings when she was ombudsman.

“Her intervention on a solemn day of commemoration, when relatives take time to remember their loved ones, is insensitive.

“I have no idea why she was moved to comment publicly today, but her contribution will serve to open wounds and re-traumatise good people.”

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