Listen: Tom Elliott tells Haas IRA bombers must be treated the same as New York bombers

FORMER UUP leader Tom Elliott says US diplomat Richard Haas must apply the same standards to the perpetrators of the Enniskillen, Omagh and McGurk’s bar bombings as those applied by Washington to those behind the New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania attacks of 2001.

Speaking on local radio on Wednesday (September 18) he and his DUP colleague Jeffrey Donaldson also appeared to draw a red line in the sand for the forthcoming talks on flags, parades and the past.

placeholder image — Dr Haass. Image courtesy of the BBC

Both men indicated there are certain first principles that won’t be compromised.

Mr Elliott said: “We hear recently that some people are trying to change the definition of terrorism

“There can be no difference between those who carried out the bombs and terrorist acts in 9/11 in America to those who carried out the Enniskillen bomb, the Omagh bomb, McGurk’s bomb and murdered over 3,000 people in our society.

Mr Donalsdon said: “There are certain fundamentals that we won’t compormise on.”