George Mitchell hopes to be well enough to return to Northern Ireland

Former US president Bill Clinton greets former US senator George Mitchell (Liam McBurney/PA)

US peace envoy George Mitchell says he holds out hope he will be able return to Northern Ireland in the company of his children.

The former senator, 89, who has undergone three years of intensive treatment for leukaemia, revealed his attendance at this week’s landmark conference commemorating the Good Friday Agreement was in doubt just days before he flew out.