Inquiry set up into Dublin/Monaghan bombings

The Irish government has announced it is to set up a commission of inquiry into the Dublin and Monaghan bombings in 1974.

The UVF claimed responsibility for the atrocities, which killed 33 people and an unborn child, 10 years ago. However, the Justice for the Forgotten Group, which represents the survivors of the bomb attacks, said it believes the loyalist paramilitary group may have had assistance from British intelligence.

Twenty-six people died in Dublin and seven in Monaghan in four car-bomb attacks on 17 May 1974 while more than 250 were injured in the attacks.

The commission will investigate the Garda's handling of the investigation, and the fact that key documents have allegedly gone missing.

It follows the conclusions of a parliamentary committee which studied a report by Mr Justice Barron into the bombings and which was presented to the Irish government in December and later made public.

The report criticised the Irish government of the early 1970s and the original inquiry by the Garda and despite not finding any evidence of collusion in the bombings, it did not rule out the involvement of members of the security forces in Northern Ireland.

(MB)