Amnesty International backs call for independent inquiry into the Omagh bombing

Amnesty International has joined some of the bereaved Omagh bomb families in calling for a public independent inquiry into the Real IRA atrocity and the investigation into it.
Twenty-nine people were killed in the 1998 car bombing, the 15th anniversary of which will be marked a week from today.
The families of some of the those killed in the Omagh bombing say they will release parts of a report commissioned three years ago into the investigations on both sides of the border.
They say they presented it to the British and Irish governments over a year ago and have not had a response.
Michael Gallagher, whose son Aidan was murdered in the attack, has told the BBC the report contains “sensitive” material.
Now, Amnesty is backing the relatives calls, saying an inquiry is needed to comprehensively investigate the circumstances surrounding the bomb attack and to ensure lessons are learnt.
It has urged the British government to establish an independent inquiry without delay, and is calling on the Irish and US governments to offer full co-operation with the work of such an inquiry.
Amnesty says there are unanswered questions about the gathering and sharing of intelligence material both between internally between the RUC and MI5, and between international agencies including the UK authorities, gardai and the FBI.