Posted on 10/20/2002 11:38:24 AM PDT by smokegenerator
Real IRA admits to Omagh bomb and disbands
By Francis Elliott, Deputy Political Editor
(Filed: 20/10/2002)
The dissident Real IRA announced that it was disbanding last night as it issued an admission of responsibility for the Omagh bomb and declared that the 1998 outrage had "irreparably damaged" the republican cause.
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Real IRA prisoners issued a statement admitting responsibility for the attack, and blamed its "corrupt" leadership for its disintegration. The declaration marks the end of the breakaway group as a credible rallying-point for republican paramilitaries disaffected by the participation of Sinn Fein-IRA in the peace process.
Relatives of the victims of the Omagh bomb, which killed 29 and injured 200, called the move "great news" but demanded to know whether it had been prompted by promises from the British or Irish governments of early release for dissident republican prisoners.
In a statement to the Irish Sunday Independent - allegedly drafted before Tony Blair's call on Thursday for republican terrorist groups to disband - the prisoners at the Portlaoise high security jail indicated that the Real IRA should end its activities.
The convoluted declaration was framed as an attack on the group's representatives outside jail: "This Army leadership's financial motivations far outweigh their political commitment to our struggle at this time. [Real] IRA prisoners find this morally and politically unacceptable. We believe that the current Army leadership has forfeited all moral authority to lead the [Real] IRA."
It is understood that the statement reflects the growing belief of the prisoners that its remaining members outside jail have lost all interest in the achievement of republican political objectives. Since its formation, the Real IRA has always been heavily involved in gangsterism and extortion.
In a separate document, the organisation said that the Omagh bomb had "irreparably damaged" the Irish republican cause. It said the attack had been launched with the Continuity IRA fellow terrorist faction.
The statement was reportedly endorsed by all the senior figures of the Real IRA within the high-security jail where the alleged leader, Michael McKevitt, from Dundalk, Co Louth, is awaiting trial in Dublin's anti-terrorist Special Criminal Court early next year, becoming the first man to be charged with directing terrorism under the terms of legislation introduced by the Irish government in response to the Omagh bomb. It is believed that 50 of the prison's inmates are aligned to the group.
The statement leaves those remaining members of the Real IRA outside prison without serious significance. At its height, with more than 100 members, the breakaway group threatened to displace the Provisional IRA as the leading republican terrorist organisation, not least because many members had access to arms caches and explosives dumps.
Michael Gallagher, whose son Aiden at Omagh, said the disbandment was "great news" but he wanted to know at what price it had been achieved. "We are aware that the Irish government have been in talks with the Real IRA for some considerable time."
Downing Street last night declined to comment on the statement. In contrast, the Provisional IRA yesterday rejected Mr Blair's call last week for a signal that it was ready to disband for the sake of rescuing the peace process. A spokesman for the Provisional IRA said it would "not accept unrealistic demands" made by the Prime Minister following the suspension of the Northern Ireland executive.
Next story: No campaign concedes defeat as Ireland swings behind Nice
You coward. You pick on Happygal in private messages rather than having the bravery to stand up in an open forum and make your accusations.
Your support for terrorism and now your vicious attack on Happygal behind closed doors means you're not a man, rather a bully, hoping to pick off targets without anyone noticing. Pick on someone your own size. Bring it on. You are hardly worth the trouble, but no one, NO ONE treats Happygal like that. Is that clear?
Ivan
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