Belfast - Relatives of the victims of Northern Ireland's worst-ever terrorist bombing in the town of Omagh in 1998 Monday won a landmark civil action for compensation at the High Court in Belfast. The court ruled that the Real IRA, an off shoot of the formerly terrorist Irish Republican Army (IRA), was responsible for the attack.
It also named the IRA members found liable for the blast, in which 29 people and unborn twins died on August 15, 1998.
The legal action marked the first case of a terrorist organization being sued in a civil case brought by victims' families.
No-one has been convicted in a criminal court for the bombing, and no-one will be jailed as a result of the civil action.
The relatives launched the action to sue five men and the Real IRA as an organization for up to 14 million pounds (22 million dollars).
The British government helped fund the action, contributing 800,000 pounds to the total estimated costs of 1.5 million pounds.
