BELFAST, Northern Ireland (AP) Britain's Cabinet minister for Northern Ireland has rejected calls for a public probe into alleged tipoffs that might have stopped the 1998 car bomb attack on Omagh.
In a letter to victims' families published Thursday, Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers says a new probe is unnecessary because a police watchdog is already investigating the full circumstances of the bombing.
The Real IRA splinter group killed 29 people, mostly women and children, in the blast.
The Omagh Support and Self Help Group, which long has demanded a public investigation and which received Thursday's letter, says it is disappointed but not surprised by Villiers' refusal.
The group alleges that British and Irish anti-terror detectives received advance warning from its moles within the Real IRA that an attack on Omagh could happen.
