Thursday, August 22, 2002

Special Branch: Still Untouchable Gerry Kelly On 12 December, the Ombudsman published her report indicting the Special Branch and the RUC leadership over their role at the time of the Omagh bomb. She was also highly critical of the obstacles placed in the path of her inquiry into vital issues. Former RUC Chief Ronnie Flanagan responded on 24 January. He in effect binned the Ombudsman's recommendations. On 7 February it was the turn of the new Policing Board to publish its recommendations. At the core of all of this is the Special Branch - the 'force within a force' - which has acted with impunity for decades. Below we explore if this has changed as a result of the above Omagh Bomb reports. 6:30:41 AM