THE coroner at the inquests into the deaths of 21 people in the Birmingham pub bombings has instructed the jury to return a verdict of unlawful killing.
Yesterday Sir Peter Thornton QC began summing up six weeks of evidence into the explosions at two city centre pubs on November 21, 1974.
The bombs killed 21 and injured 220 at the Mulberry Bush and the Tavern in the Town bars.
The coroner listed eight questions which the jury had to answer, including the adequacy of telephone warnings, whether the authorities had forewarnings of the attacks and whether the IRA was responsible.
He directed the jury to "set aside their feelings" in reaching their verdicts and to answer 'Yes' to the question whether the 21 people were unlawfully killed.
"This was murder in ordinary language and murder in law," he said.
"Consider the nature of the planting and priming of the bombs, the location of the bombs in crowded pubs. When you take this all into account there is only one answer.
"This was murder and you can be sure of it," he said.
"You have heard a great deal of moving and distressing evidence which as fellow human beings we are touched by.
"Whatever your feelings you must put them to one side. Come to your decisions coolly and calmly on the evidence," Sir Peter said.
The inquest previously heard from a convicted IRA bomber known as 'Witness O' who claimed Seamus McLoughlin, Mick Murray, Michael Hayes and James Gavin - were responsible for planting the bombs.
Six men were wrongfully jailed in 1975 for the bombings, but their convictions were quashed by the Court of Appeal in 1991 in one of the high profile miscarriages of justice in British legal history.
The jury will now retire to consider its verdicts.
