Sinn Féin MP Cathal Mallaghan has welcomed a ruling by a coroner today that found the SAS executions of Kevin Barry O’Donnell, Sean O’Farrell, Peter Clancy and Patrick Vincent in Clonoe in February 1992 were “not justified”.

The Mid Ulster MP said:

“Today’s ruling is welcome, and confirms what many in our community knew for a long time; that these four men were executed by the SAS without justification.

“The families of these four men have courageously campaigned for over three decades to reveal the full truth around this incident, and to debunk false accusations spread at the time by state agencies.

“The British Government must proceed expeditiously to fully ‘repeal and replace’ the Legacy Act, as it committed to do, including the full reinstatement of all inquests.

“These findings lay bare the rationale behind the British Government’s determination to subsume all inquests within the ICRIR, whereby the British Secretary of State would decide what findings or information would be released to families via a vetted report. 

“This will only strengthen the resolve of all families still awaiting inquests to ensure the British Government’s intent does not prevail.”