Families of people killed by members of the security forces during the Troubles have met Northern Ireland Secretary of State Karen Bradley.

Ms Bradley reached out to a number of victims' groups amid controversy over her comments that such deaths were not a crime.

Some refused to meet her but this morning a delegation of relatives did travel to Stormont House in Belfast.

Ms Bradley's remarks in the Commons on Wednesday that killings carried out by the police and military during the Troubles were not crimes, rather actions of people "fulfilling their duties in a dignified and appropriate way", sparked anger among some victims and political parties.

Speaking after the meeting, Frances Meehan, whose brother was shot dead by the British army in 1980, called for her to resign.

"I wanted to meet her because I wanted to look her in the eye to tell her how I felt about her comments in the House of Commons," she said.

"I also wanted to say to her that on this day, International Women's Day, that she is an insult to women. We know she has apologised but her position is completely and utterly untenable and she needs to resign." 

In a statement yesterday, Ms Bradley said she was "profoundly sorry" for the "offence and hurt" caused by her remarks.

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Ahead of the private meeting at Stormont, campaign group Relatives for Justice tweeted a picture of them, saying: "A delegation of families bereaved by the British Army and RUC outside Stormont House on way to meet Karen Bradley, look her in the eye, and tell her what they think."

Relatives of those killed in shootings involving the army in Ballymurphy in west Belfast in 1971 refused to meet the Conservative MP.

John Teggart, whose father Danny was shot 14 times at Ballymurphy, said Mrs Bradley should resign.

"We will not meet her, and have one request for Mrs Bradley and that is for her to resign immediately," he said.

"Families request that those parties who support our campaign join us and refuse to meet with Karen Bradley.

Ms Bradley made it clear yesterday that she would not be leaving her role, vowing instead to work to deliver for people she had offended.

"I want to get on and get this job done," she said.

Downing Street has said Prime Minister Theresa May retains full confidence in her.

Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan has said the Government is not seeking the resignation of Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley in the wake of her comments about security force killings in the North.

Mr Flanagan said Ms Bradley had apologised and admitted what was an error.

The Minister said he fundamentally disagrees with what she had to say but he believes she realises herself she was wrong and he accepts the sincerity of her apology.

He also said it was now "important we move on", and "she has a job of work to do" and that it was not a matter for him whether Ms Bradley stays in office.

Earlier today, Fianna Fáil's justice spokesperson Jim O'Callaghan also said his party was not calling Ms Bradley to resign.

He said the decision is up to British Prime Minister Theresa May whether she be sacked or not.

Speaking to reporters at Leinster House, Mr O'Callaghan said that if he was Ms Bradley's boss he would have "serious concerns about how she performed her functions over the past two days".

Mr O'Callaghan said: "It has been a very difficult time for the victims of security forces in Northern Ireland. I think Secretary of State Bradley's comments were very insensitive.

"I think they were wrong and I think they were misleading. However she has apologised for them."

He added: "I think that by apologising in such a profuse way, that is sufficient, but certainly she needs to be very careful about what she says in the future."

Ms Bradley's comments carried added significance as they were made a week before long-awaited decisions from Northern Ireland prosecutors on whether 17 soldiers involved in the Bloody Sunday shootings in Derry in 1972 will face prosecution.

Earlier, Minister for Social Protection Regina Doherty said Ms Bradley has a real opportunity now to move on from words and prove her sincerity to the people of Northern Ireland.

Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Ms Doherty said Ms Bradley's remarks were incredibly insensitive and wrong but said she has made significant efforts to try to convince people that she made a mistake and it was wrong.

SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said that at the heart of the outrage over Ms Bradley’s comments is the concern by families that there is an attempt "behind the scenes" to protect soldiers from prosecution.

On the same programme, he said it is not okay for Ms Bradley to "just say sorry" and called on her to resign as she has proven herself to be out of her depth.