Lockerbie Bomber Released and to Return to Libya a Free Man
THE TELEGRAPH: The Lockerbie bomber, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi, has been released from prison in Scotland and can return to Libya a free man after serving eight years of his life sentence.

Lockerbie bomber released
Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill announced his release on compassionate grounds in a press conference.

Megrahi, who has terminal prostate cancer, could be on his way home within hours to spend his dying days with his family.

Sources at a military airport near Tripoli, Libya, said that the plane which will take him back home was en-route to Glasgow Airport earlier today, suggesting he could leave this afternoon.

Megrahi, 57, was convicted of killing 270 people in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight. Some 189 Americans were among those who died in the airliner explosion.

The decision to free him is likely to cause outrage in the United States, where Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she hoped he would stay behind bars.

Mr MacAskill made the announcement at the Scottish Government's ministerial headquarters in Edinburgh. >>> | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Watch BBC video Lockerbie bomber to be released >>>

Megrahi Walks Up the Steps to Freedom
Photo: The Independent
THE INDEPENDENT: Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi was today released from prison to die with his family in Libya.
Megrahi, who has terminal cancer, was driven from HMP Greenock in a white van escorted by three police cars, another van and five motorcycles.

The convoy set off on the 16-mile journey to Glasgow airport, where a jet was waiting to return him to Tripoli, after he was released on compassionate grounds by Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill.

Megrahi, 57, has served eight years of a life sentence for murdering 270 people when a Pan Am plane was blown up over Lockerbie in 1988.

Dozens of journalists from around the world were outside the entrance of the jail as its blue automatic door slid open to let the convicted bomber out at 2.36pm.

The convoy arrived at Glasgow airport at around at around 3.05pm. Megrahi was taken straight on to the tarmac where the plane was waiting.

After a short delay, the bomber, wearing a baseball cap, left the van and slowly walked with a stick up the stairs on to the jet.
In a move that has caused outrage in the United States, Mr MacAskill said Megrahi would now be released early from prison today.

He said Megrahi "now faces a sentence imposed by a higher power".

Mr MacAskill added: "It is one that no court, in any jurisdiction, in any land, could revoke or overrule. It is terminal, final and irrevocable. He is going to die."

In a statement that lasted more than 20 minutes, Mr MacAskill said Megrahi had shown no compassion to his victims, but added: "That alone is not a reason for us to deny compassion to him and his family in his final days."

Mr MacAskill said: "I am conscious there are deeply held feelings and that many will disagree whatever my decision. However a decision has to be made.

"Scotland will forever remember the crime that has been perpetrated against our people and those from many other lands, the pain and suffering will remain forever.

"Some hurt can never heal, some scars can never fade. Those who have been bereaved cannot be expected to forget, let alone forgive. Their pain runs deep and the wounds remain." >>> Press Association | Thursday, August 20, 2009

MacAskill's full statement on Lockerbie bomber >>> Press Association | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Cameron Condemns Lockerbie Bomber's Release
THE INDEPENDENT: The decision to free Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds was greeted with mixed reactions today.

Conservative Party leader David Cameron said: "I think this is wrong and it's the product of some completely nonsensical thinking, in my view.

"This man was convicted of murdering 270 people, he showed no compassion to them, they weren't allowed to go home and die with their relatives in their own bed and I think this is a very bad decision."

But Tam Dalyell, the former Labour MP and ex-father of the House of Commons, who has persistently claimed that Megrahi was innocent, said today: "Mr MacAskill, the Scottish Justice Minister, has arrived at the right decision on compassionate grounds.

"I do not accept his endorsement of the guilt of Mr Megrahi, whom I continue to believe had nothing whatsoever to do with the crime of Lockerbie."

Kara Weipz, 36, who lost her student brother Rick, 20, in the atrocity, condemned the decision.

Speaking from her home in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, she said: "I think it's an absolutely horrible decision.

"I don't know how you show compassion to someone who has shown no remorse for what he has done and as Mr MacAskill praised the justice system and the investigation and the trial, how do you then show this person compassion? It's just utterly despicable.

"I think he should have died in prison. Why should he be returned to Libya?

"That's not what we were promised. We were always told he would serve out his full sentence in Scotland."

Scottish Labour criticised the decision to release Megrahi.

Labour leader and MSP Iain Gray said: "If I was First Minister, Megrahi would not be going back to Libya. The decision to release him is wrong.

"He was convicted of the worst terrorist atrocity in our history, the mass murder of 270 people.

"While one can have sympathy for the family of a gravely ill prisoner, on balance our duty is to honour and respect the victims of Lockerbie and have compassion for them.

"The SNP's handling of this case has let down Scotland." >>> Press Association | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Al-Megrahi Calls Mother Who Says She Keeps the Door Open, Expecting Him to Enter at Any Moment
Hajja Fatma, Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi’s mother. Photo: The Tripoli Post
THE TRIPOLI POST: Tripoli— Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, the Libyan citizen imprisoned for 27 years in a Scottish jail, has called his mother on Wednesday telling her that he hoped to be with her by Ramadan.

The Tripoli Post learned on Thursday during an interview with Megrahi’s Mother and his elder brother that Abdelbaset Ali made a phone call to his mother from his cell in Greenock Prison and said "I hope by Ramadan I will be with you."

Al-Megrahi added on the phone that he was not officially informed of his release, according to his family.

When asked about her feelings that her son may be coming home soon, the 95-year old frail but upbeat Hajja Fatma said "I do not close the house’s door at all. I am expecting him to enter at any moment."

Hajja Fatma has not been informed by the family of her son's terminal illness out of fear that it would cause her much harm at such an old age. Al-Megrahi's mother will only realize the situation when she sees him.

However, she does look healthy and very upbeat but she is in a frail physical condition and has hypertension. Her family decided it would be better for her health if she was not exposed to all the facts.

With tears in her eyes, Hajja Fatma described how she would meet her son after serving over ten years [sic] in prison in England when he arrives: “I would run out to the street and hug him so tight[,]”

When asked about his innocence as far as the Lockerbie bombing is concerned and what would she tell the PanAm’s victims’ relatives, Hajja Fatma said with deep resolve “We told them that my son was innocent, that he would not slaughter a chicken at home and that he would not have caused the disaster of Lockerbie."

"Eleven years I did not spend the holy month of Ramadan with him, I am waiting for that day when he comes back," she added. >>> | Thursday, August 13, 2009

He Must be Released, Al-Megrahi Is Dying, Wife
THE TRIPOLI POST: The wife of the Libyan citizen Abdelbaset Ali Mohmet al-Megrahi, who was unjustly convicted in the Loclerbie bombing, warned on Thursday that he was in danger of dying due to deteriorating cancer.

"His health has considerably deteriorated. He is in danger of dying," Aisha Megrahi told AFP. "The disease has spread across his body."

Megrahi is serving a life sentence with a minimum term of 27 years in a British prison for unfairly and unjustly convicted of downing a transatlantic US airliner over the Scottish village of Lockerbie in 1988, killing 270 people.

He has been diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer, according to his lawyers, but a Scottish court in November refused to free him on bail because of his health.

Defence lawyers say Megrahi's cancer is in a terminal phase but the Appeal Court in Edinburgh ruled that he could live for years depending on how successful his treatment is.

"While the disease from which the appellant suffers is incurable and may cause his death, he is not at present suffering material pain or disability," Lord Justice General Arthur Hamilton said at the time.

Aisha Megrahi said "they have refused to set him free. It is clear that the British prefer that he dies in jail."

She claimed that her husband "haemorrhaged several times recently."

"His body is not reacting any more to medication because of his bad psychological condition, according to a report by his doctor," she said, adding that she had visited him three times this month alone.

"Hospitals are refusing to admit him because of the exaggerated (police) surveillance involved in transferring him" from prison, she added.

Megrahi's wife said his family's "only wish is that he be transferred to a hospital or to our house in Scotland, so that he can spend what is left of his life with his family." >>> | Friday, August 27, 2009

Special Report: The Libya Investment Firm and the Release of the Lockerbie Bomber
THE TELEGRAPH: Americans are questioning why a company was set up in London a week after news broke that Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber, may be released.

Abdel Baset al-Megrahi in Tripoli. Photo: The Telegraph
The terraced house just around the corner from the American embassy in London looks like most in the affluent street. Tall and elegant, only the shiny brass plaque gives a clue to what lies beyond the black front door.

The name reads Dalia Advisory Limited, a company established by Libyan businessmen just a week after the country's officials were told the Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was being considered for release on compassionate grounds.

Dalia Advisory is in fact a "front" for the Libyan Investment Authority (LIA), a sovereign wealth fund with £80 billion, to invest in Britain and beyond. The Georgian town house, bought for £6 million, is, ironically, only a few yards from the US Embassy in Grosvenor Square.

Senior business sources have told The Sunday Telegraph that had Megrahi died in a British jail, the LIA would have taken its vast sums elsewhere. "If Megrahi had perished in Scotland, we would have become a pariah state as far as the Libyans were concerned," said one source.

Oliver Miles, a former ambassador to Libya and now deputy chairman of the Libyan British Business Council, said: "At the time of his release everyone knew that if he died in a Scottish jail, it would be bad for our relations."

But some 1,500 miles from the LIA's Mayfair headquarters, Megrahi, 58, is clinging defiantly to life despite his terminal cancer – much to the embarrassment of the authorities in Britain.

The former Libyan intelligence officer is living at government expense in a prosperous Tripoli suburb in a two-storey villa surrounded by gardens, where he is looked after by his wife, their five children and a team of medics.

He enjoys superstar status, repeatedly feted as a "much-loved" hero of the Libyan people. According to Megrahi's family, he has received up to 30,000 house guests – a white tent was erected in the garden for visitors – while newborn babies across Libya have been named after him. Gaddafi family members have also made several private visits, friends say.

But he is said to be lower in spirits than when he first arrived home, and does not leave the house – spending much of his time propped up in bed, sedated for the pain.

Prof Karol Sikora, one of the doctors who suggested Megrahi had just three months to live, insists that there is no miraculous recovery. "I am well-informed he is dying; he is just not dying as fast as we predicted," he said. Scottish authorities insist that the study by Prof Sikora and two other doctors, which was paid for by Libya, had not been considered and was not a contributory factor to Megrahi's release.

However long Megrahi now survives, the fact is business between Britain and Libya is currently booming. British exports to Libya are now double what they were a year ago while imports from Libya have risen three fold. In the first two months of this year alone, the UK exported £110 million of goods and services. >>> Robert Mendick, Philip Sherwell in New York and Andrew Alderson | Saturday, July 24, 2010

NZZ am SONNTAG: BP und der kranke Attentäter: Laut Libyen befindet sich Lockerbie-Attentäter im Sterben – Die Ölfirma BP hat sich vor fast einem Jahr für die Begnadigung des todkranken Terroristen al-Megrahi eingesetzt. Nach den Prognosen müsste der Libyer heute längst tot sein. >>> Kristina Bergmann, Kairo | Sonntag, 25. Juli 2010

Revealed: Libya Paid for Medical Advice that Helped Lockerbie Bomber's Release
“It showed the relations between Britain and Libya are strong and deep. We in Libya appreciate this and Britain will find it is rewarded.” – Abdul Majeed al-Dursi, chief spokesman for the régime

THE TELEGRAPH: The British, Scottish and Libyan governments connived to free Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds The Sunday Telegraph can disclose.

Gordon Brown meets Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. Photo: The Telegraph
Medical evidence that helped Megrahi, 57, to be released was paid for by the Libyan government, which encouraged three doctors to say he had only three months to live.

The life expectancy of Megrahi was crucial because, under Scottish rules, prisoners can be freed on compassionate grounds only if they are considered to have this amount of time, or less, to live.

Megrahi is suffering from terminal prostate cancer. Two of the three doctors commissioned by the Libyans provided the required three-month estimates, while the third also indicated that the prisoner had a short time to live.

This contrasted with findings of doctors in June and July who had concluded that Megrahi had up to 10 months to live, which would have prevented his release.

Professor Karol Sikora, one of the examining doctors and the medical director of CancerPartnersUK in London, told The Sunday Telegraph: “The figure of three months was suggested as being helpful [by the Libyans].

“To start with I said it was impossible to do that [give a three-month life expectancy estimate] but, when I looked at it, it looked as though it could be done – you could actually say that.” He said that he and a second doctor, a Libyan, had legitimately then estimated Megrahi’s life expectancy as “about three months”. A third doctor would say only that he had a short time to live.

This weekend it was reported that Megrahi was moved out of an emergency care unit in Tripoli.

The prognosis from the three doctors – two from Britain – was used as part of the evidence by Kenny MacAskill, the Scottish Justice Secretary, last month when he concluded that Megrahi should be released on compassionate grounds. Our investigation also reveals that:

Mousa Kousa, a senior Libyan politician who was expelled from Britain in 1980 for boasting of a plot to kill Libyan dissidents in London, played a key role in the talks to free Megrahi, and threatened serious consequences if the prisoner died in jail. Mr Kousa, now the Libyan foreign minister, was once implicated in planning the Lockerbie bombing – a claim he vehemently denies. According to the minutes of a meeting on Jan 22 between Libyan and Scottish officials: “Mr Kousa stated that Mr al-Megrahi’s death in Scotland would not be viewed well by the Muslims or Arabs. Nor would it be good for relations.” >>> Andrew Alderson, Chief Reporter, Robert Mendick and Damien McElroy in Tripoli, with additional reporting by Leonard Doyle in Washington | Saturday, September 05, 2009

Libyans Receive Al-Megrahi’s Release with Open Hands, Shocked at His State of Health
THE TRIPOLI POST: Tripoli, Libya-- Libyans are celebrating this evening the return of their beloved son, Abdelbaset Ali Al-Megrahi, with thousands are [sic] waiting for his plane to land at Ma’atiqa International airport.

However, those who have had the chance to see today’s photos of Abdelbaset Ali Al-Megrahi in such a bad state of his health [sic] are expressing their shock and some of them could not help but drop some tears on their faces.

Many are blaming the Scottish authorities for not taking care of Megrahi’s health while in prison and speculate that he was left, on purpose, to die of his cancer.

The statement made by the Scottish justice secretary, Kenny MacAskill, who said Thursday “Mr Al-Megrahi now faces a sentence imposed by a higher power. It is one that no court, in any jurisdiction, in any land, could revoke or overrule. It is terminal, final and irrevocable. He is going to die,” is being viewed by many Libyans as a case in point.

This statement reads as if the Scottish authorities have made sure that Megrahi dies within days from his release. In other words, Libyans are now convinced that the Megrahi case could be viewed as a premeditated murder on the part of the Scottish prison authorities.

However, despite such down feeling many are celebrating Megrahi’s return home.

The news of the long anticipated release of Abdelbaset Ali Al-Megrahi has provoked wide excitement among Libyans. The glad tidings came at a time when Libyans are already in preparation of the grand celebrations of the 40th Anniversary of the Great Al Fatah Revolution and welcoming of the holy month of Ramadhan.

Many of those interviewed by The Tripoli Post expressed a big sigh of relief for Al-Megrahi’s final return especially at a time when the Muslim Holy month of Ramadan is commencing. Ramadan is regarded as a symbolic Muslim month which symbolizes forgiveness, happiness and reunion. >>> Staff Writer, The Tripoli Post | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Lockerbie Bomber: His Release Is a Mistake, Says President Obama
THE TELEGRAPH: President Barack Obama described the release of Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi as a "mistake" and called on the Libyan government to place him under house arrest.

In a live radio interview, the president said the United States administration had been in contact with the Scottish Government to register its objection to the move.

He also called on Libya to ensure Megrahi is not given a welcome back to his home country after being released today from a Scottish prison.

But thousands were on hand to greet him warmly when his plane from Scotland touched down at a military airport in Tripoli. There was a festive atmosphere with some wearing T-shirts with Megrahi's picture. Others waved flags while Libyan songs blared.

Megrahi, the only man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing, continued to protest his innocence and expressed his "sympathy" with the victims of the tragedy after being released from prison on compassionate grounds. >>> Lucy Cockcroft and Matthew Moore | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Watch BBC video:
Obama says Megrahi release a 'mistake' >>>

Watch BBC video:
Lockerbie bomber freed from jail >>>

BBC:
Megrahi: 'A convenient scapegoat?' >>> | Thursday, August 20, 2009

BBC: A woman whose husband died in the Lockerbie bombing has said convicted bomber Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi should have spent the rest of his sentence in jail.

Widow Stephanie Bernstein said in releasing Megrahi on the grounds of his terminal illness, a ''mass murderer'' had been allowed to go free.

Watch BBC video:
Widow's anger at release of bomber >>>

In Full: Statement from Megrahi
BBC: After leaving HM Prison Greenock after being released on compassionate grounds, Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi released the following statement:

"I am obviously very relieved to be leaving my prison cell at last and returning to Libya, my homeland.

I would like to first of all take the opportunity to extend my gratitude to the many people of Scotland, and elsewhere, who have sent me their good wishes.

I bear no ill will to the people of Scotland; indeed, it is one of my regrets that I have been unable to experience any meaningful aspect of Scottish life, or to see your country.

To the staff in HM Prison Greenock, and before that at HM Prison Barlinnie, I wish to express thanks for the kindness that they were able to show me.

For those who assisted in my medical and nursing care; who tried to make my time here as comfortable as possible, I am of course grateful.

My legal team has worked tirelessly on my behalf; I wish to thank Advocates Margaret Scott QC, Jamie Gilchrist QC, Shelagh McCall and Martin Richardson together with the team at Taylor & Kelly, for all of their gallant efforts in my bid to clear my name.

I know they share, in no small measure, my disappointment about the abandonment of my appeal.

Many people, including the relatives of those who died in, and over, Lockerbie, are, I know, upset that my appeal has come to an end; that nothing more can be done about the circumstances surrounding the Lockerbie bombing.

I share their frustration. I had most to gain and nothing to lose about the whole truth coming out - until my diagnosis of cancer.

To those victims' relatives who can bear to hear me say this: they continue to have my sincere sympathy for the unimaginable loss that they have suffered.

>>> | Thursday, August 20, 2009

In the Megrahi Affair, the More We Learn, the Worse It Gets
This sordid tale makes me feel ashamed to call myself British. I always knew that the British establishment stank; now, it is clear to me that it stinks to high heaven! – © Mark

THE TELEGRAPH: Telegraph view: The way the Lockerbie bomber gained his release brings shame upon Britain.

Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi is the only person to have been convicted of planting the bomb that destroyed Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie. Megrahi murdered 270 people, including 51 British citizens. His release from a Scottish jail has caused fresh pain to many of the relatives of those he killed. It has tarnished Britain's reputation abroad, because in spite of the fact that the Scottish Executive has insisted that it took the decision to free Megrahi on its own, there is increasing evidence, including the story we publish today, that the British Government had, at the very least, a powerfully influential role in the decision.

Across the world, there is little doubt that the British Government is perceived as responsible for the Megrahi affair. Diplomatic relations with America have been strained, because Britain has broken a promise given to the US government that the Libyan would not be released before he had served his minimum tariff of 20 years. Worse, Britain is now identified with a policy of preferring money to justice, and being prepared to sell criminals in exchange for trade deals and concessions. That sets an ominous precedent.

The Government is now making the case for Megrahi's release by insisting that contracts with Libya – including BP's £545 million deal involving exploration for new oil reserves in that country – depended on it: not in the sense that there was a formal agreement with Libya stating "we free Megrahi and you give us the oil deal", but in the sense of an informal understanding that the one gesture would be reciprocated by the other. Jack Straw has stated that Megrahi's release was also important to the war on terrorism: Libya's co-operation on intelligence matters required it.

The Government's argument has been greeted with horror in some quarters, on the grounds that justice should never be compromised, no matter how great the costs of holding rigorously to it. We do not accept that principle. There can be cases in which it is reasonable, when the national interest clashes with justice, to prefer protecting the former. The Government has dismally failed, however, to provide a persuasive argument that the release of Megrahi is one of those cases. The Libyan was responsible for one of the worst terrorist outrages perpetrated in peace-time. His guilt has been upheld by the numerous Scottish judges who examined the evidence. He was certainly not solely responsible. But the fact that he had accomplices, and that others ordered the explosion, does not lessen his culpability for it.

Even if it were true that the future of BP's contracts in Libya depended on Megrahi's repatriation, the heinousness of his crime would make most people pause before concluding that that was the correct path to take. The logic of the Government's case seems to be that £545 million, or whatever sum shall eventually be gained from the deals with Libya, covers the murder of 270 people: the money is enough to forgive and forget the crime. >>> Telegraph view | Saturday, September 05, 2009

Most Families Outraged at Pan Am 103 Bomber's Release
CNN: Victims' family members and advocates are grieving anew as the only man convicted in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland -- which killed 270 people -- was released Thursday from a British prison.

"I feel sick. I feel depressed and outraged. I mean, I am just heartbroken," said Susan Cohen, whose daughter Theodora, a 20-year-old Syracuse University music student, was killed in the bombing.

Abdelbeset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi, 57, sick with advanced prostate cancer, was released on compassionate grounds and sent home to Libya to die, Scottish authorities said. Megrahi, who prosecutors said was a Libyan intelligence agent, was convicted in 2001 of placing a bomb on the Boeing 747.

Libya has formally accepted responsibility for the bombing and has compensated the families, although longtime Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi denied any culpability in the attack.

Cohen and others said international politics had trumped justice as U.S. and British relations with Gadhafi have thawed over the years.

"I feared they would do this," she said. "Now that they've made friends with Gadhafi ... the Western countries want to give him everything that he wants, appease him. He wanted Megrahi, they are rushing Megrahi out; they aren't even giving this a day. And the tiny little shred of justice we had is gone."

"I thought that our governments, both the U.S. and the U.K., owed it to the victims and their families to ensure that Megrahi would fulfill his sentence," said Victoria Cummock, whose husband, John, died in the attack. "If he did the crime, he should do the time. ... (But) when you try to combine politics with justice, politics always wins."

"I expected this," said Mark Zaid, a Washington-based lawyer for several victims' families. "I work with governments all the time, and governments do not act to protect the interests of the people, they act to protect the interests of the country. And those are different."

Zaid said he might file a lawsuit under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act to learn what the governments promised each other to accomplish Megrahi's release.

It especially galls the families that Megrahi's release was on compassionate grounds.

"This is mercy?" Cohen said. "Do you know what I've been living with for over 20 years now? This man deserves no compassion. He is a convicted mass murderer and terrorist. What have we come to, that this man is released?"

Added Cummock: "I think it's unconscionable that he would have the audacity to apply on compassionate grounds to be released and that they would actually consider it. Nevertheless, not only did they consider it, they granted it. "I think it's a huge disservice, not only to the families but also for the people of Lockerbie >>> Jim Kavanagh | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Leading Article: Return Flight
TIMES ONLINE: The decision to release the man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing was taken with all due consideration and compassion. But it is the wrong decision all the same

There is no question at all about Mr MacAskill’s legitimacy in making this decision. There are anomalies about the constitutional settlement between the nations of the British Union but no doubt that the relevant authority is that of Mr MacAskill. As he said at great length in his statement, Mr MacAskill followed due process meticulously. In a long list of parties and guidelines consulted he namechecked the prisoner transfer agreement (PTA), the Scottish Prison Service guidance on compassionate release, the families of victims, a woman from Spain whose sister was a member of the cabin crew, Hillary Clinton, the US Attorney-General, Eric Holder, Abdul Ati al-Obidi and his delegation from the Libyan Government, the Westminster Joint Committee on Human Rights, Jack Straw, Section 3 of the Prisoners and Criminal Proceedings (Scotland) Act 1993, the governor of Greenock prison, the Parole Board, the director of health and care for the Scottish Prison Service and, of course, the prisoner al-Megrahi himself. We might say that Mr MacAskill was at great pains to establish his authority.

So there is no question about the source of the decision. But, unfortunately, Mr MacAskill’s statement raised plenty of questions about its content. There are three things about Mr MacAskill’s statement that leave a sour taste, by far the most bitter of which is the decision itself. >>> | Friday, August 21, 2009

Nerves Show as Kenny MacAskill Faces the World’s Media
TIMES ONLINE: Kenny MacAskill, a Scottish politician who would probably be unrecognised on the streets of Glasgow, strode confidently into the Scottish government’s media lounge to deliver the statement that the world was waiting for.

Mindful of his international audience and taking into account the hours of media advice he has been given from advisers who lined the room, his usual rapid-fire delivery slowed to a plodding pace.

The opening of his carefully prepared announcement in which he recalled the night that 259 bodies fell from the sky over Lockerbie, in a bombing that killed 11 people in the town below, took on the tone of an inappropriate Jackanory episode.

“Four days before Christmas, men, women and children going about their daily lives were cruelly murdered. They included 11 from one small Scottish town. That — town — was — Lockerbie.”

Until yesterday he was best known as the man who wanted to rid Scotland of its booze-and-blade culture. Now Mr MacAskill, a mild-mannered, liberal-minded lawyer, will go down in history as the man who allowed one of the world’s most notorious mass-murdering terrorists to walk free from jail. >>> Lorraine Davidson | Friday, August 21, 2009

An Affront to Justice
DAILY EXPRESS: OUTRAGE spread across the globe last night as the man responsible for the murder of 270 innocent people in the Lockerbie bombing was freed on “compassionate” grounds.

Grieving relatives insisted that 57-year-old Abdel Basset al-Megrahi should have been left to rot in prison.

Clad in a white shell-suit, baseball cap and scarf, Megrahi was able to walk up the steps of the private Libyan charter jet waiting at Glasgow airport to take him home to Tripoli, despite terminal cancer leaving him with just months to live.

Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill claimed Megrahi’s release would show the world that Scotland was a compassionate country. But the act brought worldwide condemnation.

US President Bar­ack Obama branded it “a mistake” and David Cameron called it a “very bad” decision.

Those who lost loved ones called it an affront to justice and said Megrahi should only be going home “in a box”. >>> Gabriel Milland | Friday, August 21, 2009

Showing the Spineless Side of “Great” Britain! WikiLeaks: Britain Feared Colonel Gaddafi Could 'Cut Us Off at the Knees' Unless Lockerbie Bomber Was Freed
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Britain feared that Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi could “cut us off at the knees, just like the Swiss”, unless the Lockerbie bomber was released, leaked WikiLeaks cables show.

Libya's leader Muammar Gaddafi. Photo: The Daily Telegraph
Sir Vincent Fean, the UK's ambassador to Tripoli at the time, also warned that continuing to hold Abdelbaset Al-Megrahi in a prison in Scotland could have “disastrous implications for British interests in Libya”.

Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, 57, was jailed in 2001 for the atrocity which claimed 270 lives in 1988. He was freed on compassionate grounds in August 2009.

The warnings were contained in secret communiqués sent from US embassy staff in Tripoli in August 2009, and produced in Germany’s Der Spiegel magazine.

One cable said: “The British ambassador expressed relief that Megrahi likely would be returned to Libya under the compassionate release program.

“He noted that a refusal of Megrahi’s request could have had disastrous implications for British interests in Libya.”

Then the cable appeared to quote the ambassador saying: “They could have cut us off at the knees, just like the Swiss.” >>> Christopher Hope, Whitehall Editor | Tuesday, December 07, 2010

This just goes to show how spineless we Brits have become. Churchill must be turning in his grave! How disgusting! This story makes one feel ashamed to admit one is British. Get a grip! – © Mark

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WikiLeaks Cables: Lockerbie Bomber Freed After Gaddafi's 'Thuggish' Threats
THE GUARDIAN: Megrahi case led to threats against UK's Libyan interests, while Scots who released him had turned down 'a parade of treats'

WikiLeaks cables say Muammar Gaddafi bullied and cajoled British politicians and bureaucrats to release convicted Lockerbie bomber, Abdel Baset al-Megrahi (left), seen with the Libyan leader's son, Saif al-Islam, on his arrival in Tripoli. Photograph: The Guardian
The British government's deep fears that Libya would take "harsh and immediate" action against UK interests if the convicted Lockerbie bomber died in a Scottish prison are revealed in secret US embassy cables which show London's full support for the early release of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi.

Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, made explicit and "thuggish" threats to halt all trade deals with Britain and harass embassy staff if Megrahi remained in jail, the cables show. At the same time "a parade of treats" was offered by Libya to the Scottish devolved administration if it agreed to let him go, though the cable says they were turned down.

Britain at the time was "in an awkward position" and "between a rock and a hard place". The London charge d'affaires, Richard LeBaron, wrote in a cable to Washington in October 2008. "The Libyans have told HMG [Her Majesty's Government] flat out that there will be 'enormous repercussions' for the UK-Libya bilateral relationship if Megrahi's early release is not handled properly." >>> David Leigh | Tuesday, December 07, 2010

SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: US Diplomats Struggle with an Eccentric Despot: For American diplomats, Libya is a notorious hardship post. With his quirky habits, hard bargaining, whiny sons and Ukrainian nurses, Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi is far from easy to deal with -- and a master of political extortion. >>> Juliane von Mittelstaedt | Saturday, December 04, 2010

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Ärger mit Libyen: Schweizer schlitterten hilflos in Geiselkrise – Die Affäre um die beiden Schweizer, die fast zwei Jahre lang in Libyen festgehalten wurden, war nach SPIEGEL-Informationen brisanter als bisher bekannt. US-Kabel zeigen, wie hilflos die Diplomaten der Alpenrepublik agierten. Demnach wäre die Krise beinahe EU-weit eskaliert. >>> | Sonntag, 05. Dezember 2010

NZZ ONLINE: Calmy-Rey bricht den Negativrekord: Mit nur 106 Stimmen zur neuen Bundespräsidentin gewählt >>> sda/bbu. | Mittwoch, 08. Dezember 2010

NZZ ONLINE: Haarsträubende Details zur Libyen-Affäre: Der GPK-Bericht enthält vor allem Neues zu den Exfiltrationsplänen und zu Merz' Reise nach Tripolis >>> Simon Gemperli, Bern | Samstag, 04. Dezember 2010

TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: Calmy-Rey, présidente de la Confédération la plus mal élue de l’Histoire >>> Xavier Alonso et Romain Clivaz | Mercredi 08 Décembre 2010

LE TEMPS: Election misérable de Micheline Calmy-Rey : La socialiste genevoise n’obtient que 106 voix sur 189 bulletins valables. Vingt-et-un députés fédéraux n’ont pas jugé bon de participer à l’élection >>> Bernard Wuthrich | Mercredi 08 Décembre 2010

LE TEMPS: Micheline Calmy-Rey la mal-aimée du parlement : La socialiste genevoise doit être élue à la présidence de la Confédération mercredi. A Berne, l’embarras règne. Pas uniquement à cause du dossier libyen, mais aussi parce qu’elle irrite de nombreux parlementaires>>> Bernard Wuthrich | Mardi 07 Décembre 2010

Libya Has Made Fools of Us All Over Lockerbie Bomber Megrahi, and Much Else Besides
THE TELEGRAPH: Gaddafi was playing Tony Blair long before the release of the Lockerbie bomber, argues Con Coughlin.

It doesn't matter how much money BP stands to make from its deep-water exploration off the Libyan coast – it is never going to compensate for the humiliation Britain has suffered over last year's decision to repatriate the Lockerbie bomber, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi.

Britain's leading oil company says it has postponed plans to drill its first deep-water well in Libya's Gulf of Sirte until later in the year, because of the concerns that have been raised by the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. But that is not the only reason BP is holding fire: its senior executives fear that if work commences just as Megrahi is celebrating his first year of freedom, it would further infuriate the members of the US Senate who are already demanding a full Congressional inquiry into the circumstances surrounding Megrahi's release.

The fact of the matter is that Megrahi, according to what we were told at the time, should not be alive, and certainly not the subject of the sickening spectacle that has been arranged today by Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the Libyan dictator's son and political heir. This will see 500 teenagers, flown in from around the world at vast expense, acting as guests of honour at a ceremony to mark the one-year anniversary of Megrahi's return home from his Scottish prison cell.

Precisely what role BP played in securing Megrahi's release, or what bearing this had on its $900 million oil exploration contract, remains unclear. The company says it did no more than lobby the Scottish Parliament for a prisoner swap. But many senior officials in the Obama administration believe that BP was more deeply involved. They point to the role played by Sir Mark Allen, a former senior MI6 officer who headed the negotiations that persuaded Libya to stop work on its nuclear weapons programme, in late 2003, and wrote to the Foreign Office seeking Megrahi's release.

The lenient approach that Scottish officials adopted in dealing with Megrahi's case, in which no serious assessment appears to have been made of the terrorist's medical condition, certainly fits with the approach that Tony Blair encouraged British officials to adopt towards Libya following the nuclear deal. Colonel Muammar Gaddafi might remain one of the region's less appealing dictators, but that did not prevent Mr Blair from working tirelessly to bring him in from the diplomatic cold. Continue reading and comment >>> Con Coughlin | Friday, August 20, 2010

Lockerbie Bomber's Release Linked to Trade Deal, Claims Gaddafi's Son
I stated yesterday that this ‘deal’ was linked to trade and commerce. It had LITTLE or NOTHING to do with compassion!

We in the West are being led by a-licking, brown-nosing, fawning fools! Gordon Brown is the arch a-licking, brown-nosing, fawning FOOL!

Recently, in answer to an ePetition that I and many other people signed, he stated that the government does not believe that there has been an encroachment of Islam on our country. If Gordon Brown believes that then he is a bigger fool than I thought he was.

Now this news that the release of the man who killed 270 innocent people is linked to a trade deal! What can any decent person say to anything so despicable as this?

The politicians of the West are showing themselves to be disgusting, unworthy, obsequious nincompoops. They should be kicked out of office forthwith. They are selling our culture and civilisation down the river. Gordon Brown speaks in his wooden way about Ramadhan, and sends his best wishes to the Muslim community on the eve of Ramadhan here. Then we have the leader of the free world arse-licking Muslims here.

This stupid man – Barack Hussein Obama – speaks for all Americans. I know many Americans for whom he does NOT speak.

It is all very well to send greetings to Muslims on the occasion of Ramadhan; indeed, it is a noble and lofty gesture. But this should only be done in reciprocation. But have you ever known of a Muslim country sending us greetings on the occasion of Easter or Christmas?

I shall welcome the day when both sides send greetings to each other. Until that day comes, I shall continue to object to anyone representing me sending greetings to the other side. Don’t forget this: The other side is waging the Jihad against YOU. The people on the other side want nothing less than to bring down Western civilisation. That is what these fools, our so-called representatives in government, refuse to acknowledge. Why? Partly because they don’t have the balls to do so, and partly because commerce is ruling the roost. The bottom line is everything, as the release of Megrahi has shown us all too clearly. Paying attention to the bottom line, letting the bottom line be everything, is precisely what will ultimately bring down the West. If this is how we are going to proceed, then we are doomed to failure. Islam will be our future. – ©Mark

THE TELEGRAPH: Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s son, Saif, claimed the release of the Lockerbie bomber, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi, was linked to trade deals between Britain and Libya.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown meets Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi . Photo: The Telegraph
He made the claims in a television interview for Libyan television recorded as he accompanied Megrahi on the flight back from Scotland to Libya on Thursday.

The claims were vehemently denied by the UK government.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: “There is no deal. All decisions relating to Megrahi’s case have been exclusively for Scottish ministers, the Crown Office in Scotland and the Scottish judicial authorities.

“No deal has been made between the UK government and Libya in relation to Megrahi and any commercial interests in the country.”

The claims came as Megrahi said he would produce evidence proving his innocence before he dies.

In an interview with The Times, Megrahi said: My message to the British and Scottish communities is that I will put out the evidence and ask them to be the jury.” He refused to elaborate, or speculate about who was responisble for the deaths.

The comments came after President Obama condemned the welcome Megrahi received in Libya as 'highly objectionable'.

Mr Obama's chief spokesman, Robert Gibbs, earlier denounced the scenes in the Libyan capital Tripoli when returned home as "outrageous and disgusting".

Speaking before he left the White House to spend the weekend at Camp David, Mr Obama led US condemnation of the bomber's return.

"It was highly objectionable," he said in reference to the release and arrival at Tripoli's airport of Megrahi, where he was greeted by hundreds of people on Thursday night.

Mr Gibbs said: "The images that we saw in Libya yesterday were outrageous and disgusting. >>> James Kirkup and Aislinn Simpson | Friday, August 21, 2009

Gaddafi Plans Party with Abdelbaset al-Megrahi as His Trophy
THE GUARDIAN: Prince Andrew is set to pull out of Libya visit for the anniversary of military coup, as claims grow louder that Westminster 'cut a business deal' with Tripoli over the release from a life prison sentence for the Lockerbie bomber on compassionate grounds

If Gordon Brown is hoping that the furore over Abdelbaset al-Megrahi's release will die down now that the only man convicted of bombing Pan Am Flight 103 is back in Libya, he will be disappointed.

According to reports in the Arabic press, Megrahi will be at the centre of next month's celebrations to mark the 40th anniversary of the military coup that swept Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi to power.

The event, to be attended by politicians, leaders and royalty, will be held in the full glare of the world's media. And, unfortunately for Brown and the many people left incensed by the decision to release terminally ill Megrahi on compassionate grounds, the former Libyan intelligence officer will be prominent.

Indeed, one Libyan official, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Asharq Alawsat newspaper that Megrahi will be "the main guest". This may explain why Prince Andrew, a regular visitor in recent years, is now unlikely to attend.

Seasoned diplomats believe the timing of the event, in effect Gaddafi's chance to showcase himself to the world, and Megrahi's release, are more than coincidental. Despite Libya having shaken off its pariah status since it turned its back on terrorism and renounced weapons of mass destruction in 2003, Gaddafi has little to celebrate at the moment.

Libya's economy is dependent on oil, and its falling price has hit hard. And the country has only recently emerged from a period of double-digit inflation that saw large increases in housing costs and food prices. Megrahi is a good news story at a time when Gaddafi badly needs one.

It was always unlikely, then, that the Libyan leader would respect Brown's request, made in a letter, to handle Megrahi's return "with sensitivity". But questions are now being asked about what role, if any, Brown and his government played in co-ordinating the release. The official line from the Foreign Office is that it was a matter for the Scottish government and there were no backroom deals. >>> Jamie Doward, home affairs editor | Sunday, August 23, 2009

Release of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi a Mistake*, Government Says
THE GUARDIAN: Announcement comes as Hillary Clinton says she will investigate claims BP lobbied UK government to release Lockerbie bomber

Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi was released by Scotland on compassionate grounds. Photograph: The Guardian
The new coalition government regards the release of the man convicted of the Lockerbie plane bombing as a "mistake", Britain's ambassador to the US has said.

Sir Nigel Sheinwald made the statement as the US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, said she would look into claims by a group of Democrat senators that BP lobbied the British government to release Abdelbaset al-Megrahi to help it secure an oil deal with Libya.

The US Senate's foreign relations committee is holding a hearing into the release of Megrahi on Thursday 29 July, and BP officials have been asked to give evidence.

Last year, the decision to release Megrahi on compassionate grounds was taken by the Scottish government. At the time, Gordon Brown insisted he was not responsible for what happened, but he did say he "respected" the right of Scottish ministers to take the decision, a phrase that was taken as an endorsement of Megrahi's early release.

But last night, Sheinwald issued a statement that made it clear that the coalition government takes a different view.
"The new British government is clear that Megrahi's release was a mistake," Sheinwald said.

He went on: "The British government deeply regrets the continuing anguish that his release on compassionate grounds has caused the families of Megrahi's victims in the UK, as well as in the US. >>> Andrew Sparrow and agencies | Friday, July 16, 2010

*A BIG bloody mistake, too! Clearly a case of putting commercial interests above principle. This was a shameful decision. – © Mark

Gaddafi Plans Party with Abdelbaset al-Megrahi as His Trophy
THE GUARDIAN: Prince Andrew is set to pull out of Libya visit for the anniversary of military coup, as claims grow louder that Westminster 'cut a business deal' with Tripoli over the release from a life prison sentence for the Lockerbie bomber on compassionate grounds

If Gordon Brown is hoping that the furore over Abdelbaset al-Megrahi's release will die down now that the only man convicted of bombing Pan Am Flight 103 is back in Libya, he will be disappointed.

According to reports in the Arabic press, Megrahi will be at the centre of next month's celebrations to mark the 40th anniversary of the military coup that swept Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi to power.

The event, to be attended by politicians, leaders and royalty, will be held in the full glare of the world's media. And, unfortunately for Brown and the many people left incensed by the decision to release terminally ill Megrahi on compassionate grounds, the former Libyan intelligence officer will be prominent.

Indeed, one Libyan official, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Asharq Alawsat newspaper that Megrahi will be "the main guest". This may explain why Prince Andrew, a regular visitor in recent years, is now unlikely to attend.

Seasoned diplomats believe the timing of the event, in effect Gaddafi's chance to showcase himself to the world, and Megrahi's release, are more than coincidental. Despite Libya having shaken off its pariah status since it turned its back on terrorism and renounced weapons of mass destruction in 2003, Gaddafi has little to celebrate at the moment.

Libya's economy is dependent on oil, and its falling price has hit hard. And the country has only recently emerged from a period of double-digit inflation that saw large increases in housing costs and food prices. Megrahi is a good news story at a time when Gaddafi badly needs one.

It was always unlikely, then, that the Libyan leader would respect Brown's request, made in a letter, to handle Megrahi's return "with sensitivity". But questions are now being asked about what role, if any, Brown and his government played in co-ordinating the release. The official line from the Foreign Office is that it was a matter for the Scottish government and there were no backroom deals. >>> Jamie Doward, home affairs editor | Sunday, August 23, 2009

Revealed: Lockerbie Link to Oil Exploration Deal
THE SUNDAY TIMES: The British government decided it was “in the overwhelming interests of the United Kingdom” to make Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber, eligible for return to Libya, leaked ministerial letters reveal.

Gordon Brown’s government made the decision after discussions between Libya and BP over a multi-million-pound oil exploration deal had hit difficulties. These were resolved soon afterwards.

The letters were sent two years ago by Jack Straw, the justice secretary, to Kenny MacAskill, his counterpart in Scotland, who has been widely criticised for taking the formal decision to permit Megrahi’s release.

The correspondence makes it plain that the key decision to include Megrahi in a deal with Libya to allow prisoners to return home was, in fact, taken in London for British national interests.

Edward Davey, the Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman, said: “This is the strongest evidence yet that the British government has been involved for a long time in talks over al-Megrahi in which commercial considerations have been central to their thinking.”

Two letters dated five months apart show that Straw initially intended to exclude Megrahi from a prisoner transfer agreement with Colonel Muammar Gadaffi, under which British and Libyan prisoners could serve out their sentences in their home country.

In a letter dated July 26, 2007, Straw said he favoured an option to leave out Megrahi by stipulating that any prisoners convicted before a specified date would not be considered for transfer.

Downing Street had also said Megrahi would not be included under the agreement.

Straw then switched his position as Libya used its deal with BP as a bargaining chip to insist the Lockerbie bomber was included.

The exploration deal for oil and gas, potentially worth up to £15 billion, was announced in May 2007. Six months later the agreement was still waiting to be ratified.

On December 19, 2007, Straw wrote to MacAskill announcing that the UK government was abandoning its attempt to exclude Megrahi from the prisoner transfer agreement, citing the national interest. >>> Jason Allardyce | Sunday, August 30, 2009

Megrahi: Provocations libyennes
leJDD.fr: Abdel Basset al Megrahi, condamné pour l'attentat de Lockerbie, aurait été libéré dans le cadre d’échanges commerciaux entre la Lybie et la Grande-Bretagne. C’est du moins ce qu’affirme l’un des fils de Mouammar Kadhafi. Le dirigeant libyen a par ailleurs reçu avec les honneurs Megrahi. De quoi alimenter la polémique sur la justesse de cette libération pour raison de santé.

Alors que les Etats-Unis ont accueilli avec colère la libération d’Abdel Basset al Megrahi, jugé responsable de l’attentat de Lockerbie, la polémique grandit avec les provocations de la Libye. D’après Saïf al-Islam, l’un des fils de Mouammar Kadhafi, le sort de l’ancien agent des services secrets libyen aurait été réglé dans le cadre des relations commerciales entre Tripoli et Londres. Officiellement, c'est pourtant le gouvernement d'Ecosse qui a ordonné cette libération. "Dans tous les contrats commerciaux, de pétrole et de gaz avec la Grande-Bretagne, al Megrahi était toujours sur la table des négociations", a-t-il expliqué. "Tous les intérêts britanniques étaient liés à la libération d’al Megrahi", dont le dossier était "évoqué à chaque visite en Libye de l'ancien premier ministre britannique Tony Blair", a-t-il ajouté, pour enfoncer le clou.

Un scénario qui paraît crédible pour nombre d'observateurs. Les affaires et la politique sont "inextricablement liées" en Libye, a souligné sur la BBC Lord Trefgarne, un ancien ministre britannique, actuellement président du comité d’affaires Grande-Bretagne-Lybie. Il y aura des "profits" à attendre de cette libération, a-t-il ajouté. Des assertions évidemment démenties par Downing Street. "Il n'y a aucun arrangement", a assuré un porte-parole du Premier ministre Gordon Brown. Et un porte-parole du ministère des Affaires étrangères de renvoyer la balle dans le camp écossais: "Les décisions relatives au cas Megrahi ont été exclusivement du ressort de ministres ecossaise". >>> Maud Pierron, leJDD.fr | Samedi 22 Août 2009

Revealed: Blair's Role in Megrahi Release
THE INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY: MPs want to know what deal was struck over the Lockerbie bomber at a meeting in a London club in 2003 – long before either the Scottish government or Gordon Brown was involved

Tony Blair will be thrust into the controversy over the release of the Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi with questions in Parliament over a secret meeting the then Prime Minister orchestrated that brought Libya in from the cold.

MPs are set to demand the minutes of an extraordinary cloak-and-dagger summit in London between British, American and Libyan spies held three days before Mr Blair announced that Colonel Muammar Gaddafi was surrendering his weapons of mass destruction programme.

At the time of the secret meeting in December 2003 at the private Travellers Club in Pall Mall, London – for decades the favourite haunt of spies – Libyan officials were pressing for negotiations on the status of Megrahi, who was nearly three years into his life sentence at a Scottish jail.

Whitehall sources said the issue of Megrahi's imprisonment was raised as part of the discussions, although it is not clear whether Britain or America agreed to a specific deal over his imprisonment, or a more general indication that it would be reviewed.

MPs are to investigate what was promised by Britain at the talks on 16 December, and the role that Mr Blair played in the affair. Until now, the controversy over Megrahi's release last month has centred on discussions between Gordon Brown's government and the Scottish executive and Libya since 2007, with Mr Blair apparently not involved in any way.

It has also focused on claims that the deal was related to oil deals, with Jack Straw admitting yesterday that BP's interests in Libya played a "big part". But authoritative sources said the seeds for Megrahi's release were sown in 2003, when Libya made the historic agreement to end its status as a pariah, and that the focus on oil and trade was a "red herring".

Yesterday the Libyan Foreign Minister, Musa Kusa – who himself was present at the Travellers Club meeting – told The Times that Megrahi's release was "nothing to do with trade".

Two days after the meeting Mr Blair and Col Gaddafi held direct talks by telephone; and the next day, 19 December, the historic announcement about Libyan WMD was made by Mr Blair and President Bush.

At the time, the British government was in desperate need of an intelligence victory after the debacle of going to war in Iraq in the belief that it had weapons of mass destruction.

The Iraq Survey Group had just reported it had found no biological or chemical weapons. Two months after the talks, Mr Blair travelled to the Libyan desert to extend the "hand of friendship" to Col Gaddafi in a Bedouin tent, calculating that the PR coup of Libya dismantling WMD programmes outweighed American outrage.

Yet, in the end, it was revealed that Libya had not developed a nuclear- weapons capability and so did not pose as great a threat to the West as was feared. >>> Jane Merrick | Sunday, September 06, 2009

A Criminal Injustice
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: The release of the Lockerbie Bomber demonstrates fecklessness, not compassion.

Libya had a plane waiting for terrorist Abdel Basset Ali Megrahi even before Scottish Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill had announced the Libyan's release from jail yesterday. Within hours of the announcement, Megrahi, convicted under Scottish law for the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 in which 270 people were killed, was on his way home, flying safely through the same skies his victims had been blown out of 21 years ago.

In making his announcement of Megrahi's release on "compassionate grounds," Mr. MacAskill intoned that "when such an appalling crime is committed, it is appropriate that a severe sentence be imposed." Imposed, perhaps—but not carried out. Megrahi served less than a third of the 27 year "minimum" demanded in his 2001 life sentence. That works out to 11.6 days in prison for each of his victims, or about 14 days if you count from the time of his 1999 arrest.

Whatever else Megrahi's release is, then, it is not justice. The argument for compassion rests on Megrahi's case of advanced and apparently terminal prostate cancer. We're not sure what "compassion" is owed to a man by a country already too compassionate to apply the death penalty to mass murderers. Nor do we quite understand what Mr. MacAskill intended by his remark that Megrahi may face "a sentence imposed by a higher power." In this world, it makes no small difference to a man whether he ends his days in a foreign prison or in the bosom of his family and country. >>> | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Lockerbie Bomber Row: Details of Blair-Gaddafi Meetings Will Not Be Published
THE GUARDIAN: Papers relating to former PM's meetings with Libyan leader will not be among those published by the government this afternoon

Tony Blair, left, and Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi during a historic first meeting in 2004 after Libya had renounced its weapons of mass destruction programe. Photo: The Guardian
Downing Street has confirmed that papers relating to Tony Blair's meeting with the Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi, will not be among the documents about the Lockerbie bomber being released this afternoon.

The prime minister's spokesman said the government would publish all "relevant" correspondence relating to the release of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, the man convicted of the 1988 bombing, this afternoon.

The Foreign Office and the Ministry of Justice are putting documents on their website after 2pm. In Edinburgh the Scottish government will also be releasing its own documents, probably later in the afternoon.

But the papers will not cover Blair's meetings with Gaddafi in 2004 and 2007, which paved the way for a prisoner transfer agreement between the two countries, Downing Street said today.

Today David Cameron claimed that Gordon Brown's failure to say whether or not he approved of the release of Megrahi showed that he did not have the leadership skills required of a prime minister. Writing in the Times, the Conservative leader says that having the willingness to express an opinion was "a basic requirement of leadership".

The Tories have condemned the Scottish government's decision to release Megrahi on compassionate grounds. Brown has said that he was "repulsed" by the way Megrahi received a hero's welcome when he returned to Tripoli, but the prime minister has not said whether or not he approved of the decision to grant Megrahi his liberty.

In his Times article, Cameron says: "Mr Brown should have condemned the decision to release al-Megrahi. At the very least, he should have expressed an opinion. But all we got, day after day, was a wall of silence, finally broken after a long week when Mr Brown declared that he was 'angry' and 'repulsed' at scenes in Tripoli. We all were. But that wasn't the point. People wanted to know what the prime minister thought about the decision to release him in the first place.

"Such candour is a basic requirement of leadership – a quality that once again Mr Brown has demonstrated he lacks." >>> Nicholas Watt and Andrew Sparrow | Tuesday, September 01, 2009

Gaddafi empfängt Lockerbie-Attentäter in Tripolis
WELT ONLINE: Libyens Machthaber Muammar al-Gaddafi hat den begnadigten Lockerbie-Attentäter Abdelbasset Ali Mohammed al-Megrahi empfangen. Gaddafi lobte die Entscheidung der schottischen Regierung als "mutig" und deutete an, dass die Freilassung des todkranken Terroristen bei wirtschaftlichen Verhandlungen eine Rolle gespielt habe.

Einen Tag nach der Freilassung des Lockerbie-Attentäters Abdelbasset Ali Mohammed al-Megrahi aus schottischer Haft hat Libyens Machthaber Muammar al-Gaddafi den schwer krebskranken Ex-Terroristen empfangen. Wie die libysche Nachrichtenagentur Jana am Samstag berichtete, dankte Gaddafi bei dem Treffen der schottischen Regierung für ihren Mut. Megrahi selbst beteuerte erneut seine Unschuld und kündigte Beweise für ein „Fehlurteil“ an.

Bei dem Treffen mit dem 57-jährigen Megrahi und seiner Familie am Freitagabend lobte Gaddafi laut Jana vor allem den „Mut“ der schottischen Behörden. Sie hätten angesichts des „nicht akzeptablen und nicht angemessenen“ Drucks ihre Unabhängigkeit bewiesen. Die US-Regierung und Angehörige der 270 Opfer des Attentats auf ein US-Linienflugzeug über dem schottischen Lockerbie 1988 hatten sich vehement gegen eine Freilassung des Attentäters ausgesprochen.

Gaddafi verglich die Freilassung al Megrahis mit der Freilassung von fünf bulgarischen Krankenschwestern und einem palästinensischen Arzt vor zwei Jahren. Ihnen war vorgeworfen worden, mehr als 400 libysche Kinder vorsätzlich mit HIV infiziert zu haben.

Der libysche Staatschef bedankte sich dem Bericht zufolge auch beim britischen Premierminister Gordon Brown, bei Queen Elizabeth II. und ihrem zweitältesten Sohn Prinz Andrew. Alle drei hätten die schottische Regierung ermutigt, die „historische und mutige Entscheidung“ zu treffen, Megrahi freizulassen. Dieser Schritt werde „positive Auswirkungen“ auf die Beziehungen zwischen beiden Ländern und alle Bereiche der Zusammenarbeit haben, sagte Gaddafi.

Gaddafis Sohn Seif al-Islam hatte zuvor in einem Fernseh-Interview gesagt, dass die Freilassung Megrahis bei wirtschaftlichen Verhandlungen mit Großbritannien eine Rolle gespielt habe. Bei Verhandlungen über Öl- und Gaslieferungen sei auch der Fall des Lockerbie-Attentäters auf den Verhandlungstisch gekommen, sagte Islam, der ein wichtiger Unterhändler in den Gesprächen mit der schottischen Regierung war und Megrahi bei seiner Rückkehr begleitete. >>> | Samstag, 22. August 2009