By 
By Alan Rodgers
a.rodgers@ulsterherald.com
THE Omagh Bombing Inquiry has been told that 4,000 documents containing more than 65,000 pages of material have now been disclosed to the probe, which is examining whether the 1998 atrocity could have been prevented.
Details of the extensive disclosure process were outlined during a special hearing held in Belfast yesterday (Wednesday).
Paul Greaney KC, counsel to the Inquiry, said that regular contact had been maintained with the Government of Ireland regarding material relevant to the investigation.
He also confirmed that requests for information had been made to a wide range of government departments and agencies, including the release of private oral evidence given by former RUC officer Norman Baxter to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee more than 20 years ago.
Mr Baxter, who led the police investigation following a damning Police Ombudsman’s report into the bombing, gave his evidence in private.
Permission for the transcript to be provided to the Inquiry was granted only in recent weeks, following a formal petition to Parliament.
Mr Greaney said this success reflected the Inquiry’s determination to obtain all relevant evidence.
Further material has been requested from Merseyside, Essex and Greater Manchester Police relating to mobile phone surveillance operations around the time of the bombing on August 15, 1998.
Inquiry chair Lord Alun Turnbull is expected to rule next week on the use of Special Advocates for Core Participants – legal representatives who will be permitted to review sensitive material on behalf of victims’ families.
Lawyers for the families emphasised the importance of ensuring that as much evidence as possible is heard in public.
Lord Turnbull is also expected to deliver a ruling on the handling of “Operationally Sensitive Material”.
These are documents which could not be made public without potentially endangering national security or assisting future terrorist activity.
However, following legal submissions, it is understood that agreement has been reached among all parties to maintain a balance between openness and security.
The Inquiry is due to resume in March 2026 with Chapter Three, which will examine the events leading up to the Omagh bombing.
