Northern Ireland prosecutors have confirmed they will review a decision not to prosecute a police officer accused of protecting a suspect in an infamous sectarian killing.

The move follows a request from a public inquiry examining the 1997 murder of Catholic father-of-three Robert Hamill who was killed by a loyalist mob in Portadown, Co Armagh, as he walked home after a night out.

Armed police at the scene of the assault are accused of failing to intervene during the attack which left the 25-year-old with fatal injuries.

The inquiry issued an unscheduled interim report urging the Public Prosecution Service to "reconsider urgently" a 2004 decision not to proceed with the prosecution of former Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) Reserve Constable Robert Atkinson for conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

The murdered man's bereaved relatives said: "The family of Robert Hamill welcome this recommendation and accept that the PPS (Public Prosecution Service) will now reconsider this decision.

"We expect that it will accept the inquiry's comment that it is in the public interest to be treated as a matter of urgency.

"Robert's family are looking forward to hearing from the PPS and hope that a prosecution will follow."

Mr Atkinson denies wrongdoing, as do his former colleagues.

The PPS said it will look at the case and is contacting the Attorney General to ask if the inquiry can provide further information to inform the review. The PPS said its review would be conducted "as quickly as possible".

The sectarian murder of Mr Hamill was one of the most high-profile cases of the Troubles and was compared with the Metropolitan Police mishandling of the racist murder of black teenager Stephen Lawrence in 1993.