Director of public prosecutions argued that Michael McKevitt's challenge was bound to fail
Ireland's court of criminal appeal has struck out an application by the founder of the Real IRA to overturn his conviction for directing acts of terrorism.
In August 2003 Michael McKevitt became the first person in the Republic to be jailed for directing terrorist activities. On Friday the appeal court dismissed his challenge after the director of public prosecutions argued that it was bound to fail. McKevitt is entitled to appeal to the supreme court.
In 2009 McKevitt was found responsible for the Omagh bombing, in a civil case at Belfast high court brought by relatives of the victims. McKevitt is the husband of Bernadette Sands McKevitt, sister of the IRA hunger striker and former MP Bobby Sands.
The Real IRA was established after a split within the Provisional IRA at its so-called army convention in 1997 over its support for Sinn Fein's peace strategy.
The Real IRA's first major terrorist attack was in Omagh in August 1998 when a car bomb designed to kill police officers claimed the lives of 29 men, women and children, including a pregnant woman weeks away from giving birth to twins.
The terror group has since been dissolved and a large proportion of its membership has joined a coalition calling itself the new IRA.