Local TD, Deputy Brendan Smith has reiterated his call for the British Government and the authorities in Northern Ireland to cooperate fully with the investigations into the Dublin-Monaghan and Belturbet bombings.
The Cavan-Monaghan TD raised the issued again in the Dáil last week following commemorations to mark the 50th anniversary of the Dublin-Monaghan bombings when 34 people were killed and 300 injured. Deputy Smith called on the Tánaiste and Fianna Fáil leader Micheal Martin to ensure that legacy issues are on the agenda when he holds meetings with the new Foreign Secretary after the British election on July 4th, adding that the British legacy legislation needs to be urgently repealed.
It is now more than 50 years ago now that these atrocities were carried out and the Fianna Fail TD said the truth must be established. He added that there is a moral, international, legal obligation on the British Government to co-operate with investigations. Deputy Smith also called on the Tánaiste to insist to the British Government and the Northern Ireland authorities that there must be full co-operation with the Garda investigation into the Belturbet bombing of December 1972, in which two young teenagers, Geraldine O'Reilly and Patrick Stanley, were killed. There were horrific incidents that night, on 27 December 1972, in Clones and Pettigo as well.
Speaking in the Dail, Deputy Smith said there is clear evidence of collusion between the Glenanne gang and British intelligence and we have to make progress on these investigations.
