Omagh bomb victims appeal for worldwide donations

Victims of the Omagh bombing have appealed for worldwide donations to help them sue the reputed commanders of the Irish Republican Army dissident group responsible.

Relatives of the 29 people killed have met opposition lawmakers to renew their appeal for €2.5m to fund their unprecedented lawsuit against five suspected chiefs of the Real IRA faction.

Since serving writs on the five men, the Omagh activists have raised about €634,000, far short of the minimum legal fees they expect to face.

They must mount or abandon their action by August, the legal cutoff date.

"It is a very important issue that we stand up against these people," said Victor Barker, whose son James was among the fatalities.

"I owe it to a little 12-year-old boy whom I loved dearly to carry on doing what I'm doing, and I will do that."

Barker and another victim, Michael Gallagher, whose 21-year-old son Aidan died, say they have repeatedly asked Gerry Adams, leader of Sinn Fein, to urge IRA supporters to work with police in gathering sufficient evidence against the bombers. Last weekend, Adams reaffirmed that he would not.

Last week, a Dublin court convicted the first man linked to the Omagh attack. Colm Murphy, a wealthy publican and building contractor with previous IRA convictions, received a 14-year sentence for supplying the mobile phones used by the Real IRA to transport the car bomb from the Republic of Ireland border town of Dundalk to Omagh.

Murphy is one of the five men that the Omagh relatives are trying to sue. Another is Seamus Daly, the man that Murphy says received the mobile phones.

Two others are Mickey McKevitt, the Real IRA's alleged founder, and Liam Campbell, another alleged senior commander. Campbell has already been convicted of membership in an illegal organisation, while McKevitt is being held without bail on the same charge.