Reaction to Omagh bomb ruling

Real IRA leader Michael McKevitt and three other men have been found liable for the Omagh bomb atrocity by a ruling in a civil case brought by some of the victims' relatives.

Twenty-nine people - including a woman pregnant with twins - were murdered in the Real IRA bomb attack on 15 August 1998.

MICHAEL GALLAGHER, FATHER OF VICTIM

"Eight years has just come to an end all of a sudden. It is a result better than we could ever have imagined.

"We have sent out an important message to terrorists and their victims around the world - you now have a way of challenging those who've murdered your loved ones.

"I think it is a tremendous moral victory for the families."

STANLEY MCCOMBE, HUSBAND OF VICTIM

"It is a result we hoped for but didn't expect. We didn't build our hopes up, because we've been let down so many times before.

"It was never about money. We can stand and say that these guys are responsible for Omagh, that's what we wanted.

"There is nobody doing time for 29 murders and we have to have a public inquiry to see where things went wrong.

VICTOR BARKER, FATHER OF VICTIM

"I never built my hopes up too much after what happened before, but I'm absolutely over the moon.

"This is not just damages against individuals, it's damages against the Real IRA and they should be regarded by everyone in Northern Ireland as pariahs.

"It's time to look at these people and say ' we don't want you in this country any more, we don't want you fighting for Irish freedom on our behalf, let the people of Northern Ireland decide, by voting, what they want'."

SHAUN WOODWARD, SECRETARY OF STATE

"It is difficult for anyone not directly involved to fully comprehend the depth of pain and loss suffered by the families and friends of those so brutally murdered by the evil men of the Real IRA over ten years ago.

"Today's judgement will be welcomed by the Omagh families and the wider community.

"It is to their great credit that they have pursued this case with such vigour and determination, and the government was pleased to be able to support them.

"There are people who have the information and the evidence that the police need to bring a successful criminal prosecution.

"I hope that this judgement could encourage them to come forward."

ALEX ATTWOOD, SDLP ASSEMBLY MEMBER

"This judgement is a vindication of the campaign of the Omagh families.

"This is not a criminal conviction and those responsible will not serve even one day in prison for this offence, however, the judgement is a level of justice that has so far been denied to the Omagh families.

"It remains the case that there are enduring unanswered questions around the Omagh bomb. That requires an independent all-Ireland judicial inquiry."

FR KEVIN MULLAN, WHO GAVE THE LAST RITES TO SOME VICTIMS

"They (the families) have seen themselves let down by the police and other investigations and there's been a very lonely crusade for them.

"But they doggedly stuck at it and they've seen their work pay off now, so I feel that the ground is a little more firm under everybody's feet at the moment, that there's been a truth here that has been uncovered."

SEAMUS MCKENNA, CLEARED OF INVOLVEMENT

"My good name at least has been vindicated. I have maintained my innocence of any involvement in the Omagh bomb throughout the years.

"My family was subjected to very severe and unfair stress due to groundless allegations made against me.

"I have always been very conscious of the suffering of the victims."

PATRICIA MACBRIDE, COMMISSION FOR VICTIMS AND SURVIVORS

"We sincerely hope that the conclusion of this civil action will have brought some comfort and vindication to the victims and survivors of the Omagh bomb and we commend their courage over these past 11 difficult years

"This civil action is a landmark legal case, but the reality is that very few victims and survivors would have the financial means and, indeed, the solidarity and support of numbers, to undertake such proceedings in cases which remain unresolved."

DEREK HUSSEY, ULSTER UNIONIST COUNCILLOR

"I would like to express my personal admiration for the tenacity demonstrated by the Omagh families in pursuing this case.

"Having been failed by the criminal justice system, we can only hope that the ruling by Mr Justice Morgan will bring some small comfort to those whose lives were shattered by the Real IRA attack over 10 years ago.

"On behalf of the Ulster Unionist Party may I reiterate my deepest sympathies to those who have suffered, and who suffer to this day."