Families' fury over monitored Omagh bomb calls

Families bereaved by the 1998 Omagh bomb will lambast the intelligence services today for allegedly failing to pass on information to police investigators.

Relatives threatening legal action to obtain covert secret service tapes of the Real IRA bombers’ phone conversations on the day of the blast are to hold a press conference in Belfast.

Loved ones of 29 people plus unborn twins who died in the Co Tyrone town believe the recordings will aid their civil case against those they blame for the bloodiest atrocity of the conflict.

A BBC Panorama programme last night said the UK’s electronic intelligence agency recorded mobile phone exchanges between the Omagh bombers on the day of the August 1998 attack.

Panorama’s investigation uncovered that on the day of the attack the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) was recording phone calls between the dissident republicans on their journey to Omagh.

From these recordings the identity of individuals involved could be ascertained, not least from the conversations and their voices, families claimed.

The evidence has never been made available for a criminal prosecution nor the public made aware of its existence.

None of the culprits is behind bars despite extensive investigations.

Campaigners have asked for an independent public inquiry involving authorities on both sides of the Irish border into the police investigation and the failure to act on alleged warnings.

All main parties have backed them.