Closing arguments begin in civil case against Gerry Adams

Closing arguments begin in civil case against Gerry Adams 7 minutes ago Share Save Jayne McCormack Political correspondent, BBC News NI Share Save Closing arguments have begun in the civil trial against Gerry Adams in London, which is focusing on claims he was involved in three major IRA bombing decisions in England. The victims bringing the case allege that Adams, 77, is personally liable for the injuries they received in attacks in London and Manchester. The High Court has heard seven days of testimony, with Adams appearing in the witness box for almost 10 hours. The former Sinn Féin leader has insisted he had no involvement in the explosions and has strongly denied a claim that he was a "major player" in the IRA. In his final submissions on Wednesday afternoon, Adams' barrister Edward Kraven KC said that "very little" of the testimony heard in court over the past week related directly to the three bomb attacks at the core of the claimants' case. He told the court that not one of the witnesses called by the claimants had claimed to have "any actual first-hand knowledge" about Adams' alleged responsibility for any of the bombings. He suggested that the real objective of the claim was as a "vehicle to get the High Court to answer the question, was Gerry Adams a member of the IRA?" Both legal teams will continue their closing arguments on Thursday. London bombing 'could have ended peace talks' Earlier, the court heard Adams say the London Docklands bomb in February 1996 left him "stunned" and could have ended talks to reach peace in Northern Ireland at the time. The bombing, carried out by the IRA and is one of three attacks central to the civil case against Adams, marked the end of a ceasefire that had been in place since 1994. Speaking about the 1996 bombings in court on Wednesday, Adams said: "That may well have heralded the end (of talks) but thankfully it didn't, we were resilient and we re-engaged," he said. "The government knee-jerked and wouldn't meet with us...