Relatives of the Omagh bombing victims have called on the Government to match financial assistance being offered by the British government to fund the group's forthcoming civil action against five people suspected of involvement in the bombing in August 1998 which left 29 people dead.
The British government is to provide the Omagh bomb victims' families with the £800,000 (€1.1 million) they need to take those accused of the atrocity to court.
Northern Ireland Secretary Mr Paul Murphy confirmed today the government has found a way to help relatives raise the extra money to achieve a total fund of £1.5 million (€2.1 million) needed for a civil action.
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Fire crews sift through the wreckage caused by the Omagh bomb in August 1998
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He revealed: "I have been working for many months with ministerial colleagues in the Department for Constitutional Affairs to try to find ways of helping the Omagh families with the funding of their legal case.
"While I recognise the legal constraints and complexities, I have always believed that this is an exceptional case and the vast majority of people in Northern Ireland and beyond want to see the families bring it to court.
"The magnificent scale of the financial donations from the public to date supports that view.
"I am delighted to be able to say that these efforts have borne fruit. I have discussed the families' concerns with the Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer, and he has found a way to give the families the money they need to fight their case."
The announcement came just 24 hours after "Real IRA" leader Michael McKevitt began a 20-year sentence in Portlaoise Prison following his conviction for directing terrorism.
Twenty-nine people died in Omagh in August 1998, including a woman pregnant with twins, and hundreds were also injured in the "Real IRA" car bomb which devastated Omagh town centre.
It was the single biggest loss of life in the history of Northern Ireland.The victims included people from the Republic and Spain as well as the North.
In January 2002, father-of-four Colm Murphy became the only person to be convicted of plotting the Omagh bomb. The Special Criminal Court in Dublin sentenced the Dundalk-based builder and publican to 14 years in jail.
Last summer solicitors acting on behalf of the Omagh Victims' Civil Action Group served writs on five people suspected of involvement in the bombing, seeking #10 million in damages.
The legal documents were given to Michael McKevitt, Liam Campbell, and Colm Murphy in Portlaoise Jail.Solicitor Mr Jason McCue visited Dundalk last July to serve writs on two other people, Seamus Daly and Seamus McKenna.
Neither of the accused was present and the writs were handed either to relatives or posted through the door.
Mr Stanley McCombe, whose wife Anne was killed in the August 1998 bombing, revealed two days ago that the families were £800,000 short in meeting the £1.5 million legal costs for their civil action.