Video interview with Bertie Ahern, Irish Taoiseach, by Anne Cassen for RTE 1 News on 15 August 1998. On that same date the Real IRA, opposed to the Belfast Agreement/Good Friday Agreement, planted a bomb in Omagh which exploded killing 29 people and injuring approximately 220 more. It was the single biggest atrocity of the Troubles. Ahern is interviewed about the events of that day and its impact on the Northern Ireland Peace Process. The interview is preceded by short statements made by political leaders in Ireland, Northern Ireland and Britain on the bombing. RTE 1 News was that channel's flagship news programme
Date of Release/Broadcast: 15 August 1998
Name of First Interviewee: Bertie Ahern
Role at time of Interview: Irish Taoiseach
Purpose: News
Media: Audiovisual
Copyright: © RTÉ 2013
Link: Watch the interview
Programme/Book/Article: RTE 1 News
Time Period covered: 1998
Key Individuals: Bertie Ahern, Michael Fisher, Mary McAleese, John Bruton, Tony Blair, David Trimble, Seamus Mallon, Martin McGuinness, Bill Clinton
Key Words: Omagh bombing, Real IRA, dissident, republican, An Garda Siochana, RUC, prisoner, paramilitary, Belfast Agreement, Good Friday Agreement, decommissioning