Omagh widowers welcome verdict

Two men who were widowed in the Omagh bombing have spoken out about the conviction of Colm Murphy in connection with the Co Tyrone atrocity.

A man who was widowed in the Omagh bombing has spoken out about the conviction of Colm Murphy in connection with the Co Tyrone atrocity.

Kevin Skelton, whose wife and mother-of-four Mena, 49, was killed in the bombing, said he wanted all the terrorists to be jailed.

She died as her three teenage daughters tried on school uniforms in a shop just yards from where the car bomb went off.

Mr Skelton from the village of Drumquin, Co Tyrone, who was in a neighbouring store at the time, said: ‘‘This is the start of a long journey, but until such times as all the people responsible are behind bars, I don’t think our lives will move on.

"We try to move on, but I want justice for my wife, my children and all the people who died.’’

Laurence Rush, whose wife Libbi died in the blast, said: ‘‘I have now gone into a softer sadness away from the anger.

‘‘I feel that a crack in the plate has now opened and I do not think that we will have to wait too long before we see justice done fully.

‘‘I can only say that I genuinely believe the Real IRA are now in disarray - there’s plenty of evidence linking them, and many individuals, to Omagh.’’