How Omagh bombing victims were betrayed too ... until Mail stepped in

FAMILIES of the Omagh bombing victims were told they would not qualify for legal aid to launch a successful civil action against four Real IRA terrorists.

The blast in August 1998 was the biggest single act of bloodshed during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The death toll was 29 including a woman pregnant with twins.

When the criminal justice system had failed to bring the killers to justice two years after the atrocity, the families approached the Mail for help. Readers responded magnificently to this newspaper’s appeal, helping raise £1.2million towards the landmark case for damages.

Days before the fifth anniversary of the attack, the Government agreed to find the extra £800,000 needed to bring the action to court. In 2009 a Belfast judge ruled that convicted IRA leader Michael McKevitt, Liam Campbell, Seamus Daly and Colm Murphy were behind the atrocity.

They were ordered to pay £1.6million in damages to relatives of the victims – although the relatives are still pursuing the compensation.