Ecosse cover story: There's a plane down, an airlinerIn a written Commons statement Mr Straw said: "We have taken the view that to be of value, any scrutiny should be able to deliver new and useful conclusions despite the passage of time and the investigations that have already taken place. "We have concluded that, given the absence of any significant new information, the fact that the key issues have already been extensively explored and action taken - including substantial changes to airport procedures - it is most unlikely that any further form of inquiry would unearth further lessons to be learned 14 years after the event which had not already been identified by earlier investigations. "The government have therefore decided not to initiate any further form of review on Lockerbie."
A Scottish MP in March called for a public inquiry into the bombing despite Megrahi's conviction. Russell Brown, whose Dumfries constituency includes the town of Lockerbie, said many questions had been left unanswered.
The play, provisionally entitled Lockerbie 103, is set in two principal times and places: a bed and breakfast in Lockerbie, on the night in December 1988 when a plane carrying 259 passengers and crew exploded, killing all on board and 11 people on the ground; and Camp Zeist in Holland over a decade later, during the trial of Libyans Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi and Al Amin Khalifa Fhimah. Dillon, who grew up with Ferguson in Coatbridge, has consulted his friend and Ashton throughout the project, asking them to read new drafts of the play as it went through revisions.
Cover-up Of Convenience examined the case against the Libyans, but also cast doubt on the official investigation of the tragedy, led by the tiny Dumfries and Galloway police force, and on the subsequent trial, by looking at the evidence against other suspects, most notably the Iranian government and a terrorist group based in Syria. The conviction of Megrahi (his co-accused was acquitted) supposedly proved the official version and drew a line under the Lockerbie saga. But among the evidence that some claim was suppressed at the trial were certain items reported to have been found in the wreckage; wads of US dollars, retail quantities of heroin, and a Hezbollah T-shirt. The authors put forward a theory of a high-level cover-up that involved the CIA.
Ferguson said last week: 'The play is inspired by the book. You could have gone two ways with this thing and been very sombre and serious about this subject. Des is trying to say there's elements of farce about this, which would appeal to those who are pretty sceptical about the trial and the investigation.' In contrast to the creative tidal wave which swamped this summer's Edinburgh Festival following the September 11 tragedy in the US, Lockerbie has not been the subject of endless plays and films.
According to Ferguson, former Channel 4 chief executive Michael Jackson took a personal interest in producing a film on the disaster, but the idea has not been followed-up by his successor Mark Thompson. Sean Connery's name was mentioned in connection with a script by the writers of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet and The Commitments, Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, but the film never saw the light of day.
A US production called The Women Of Lockerbie was staged earlier this year. It told of the local women who painstakingly repacked the cases of the passengers of PanAm flight 103, washing and pressing the clothes of the mostly American victims that they found scattered in the wreckage in the area, and sending them back to their grieving families. Dillon's play will be directed by Ashton's sister Rachel, who runs the Ashton Theatre Group in Barrow-in-Furness. Rehearsals begin in January and the play is provisionally scheduled to open at the Traverse in March next year. Ferguson and Ashton have been asked to speak at a question and answer session with the audience on the opening night. Both Rachel Ashton and Dillon declined to comment on the production, but said they were hoping to announce it officially to the press before Christmas.
A spokeswoman for the Traverse Theatre said the venue was still finalising its programme for next year and could not confirm whether the production would be staged in the spring.
Ecosse cover story: There's a plane down, an airlinerWhen Pan Am flight 103 was blown out of the sky over Lockerbie on December 21, 1988, Jim Swire’s life changed for ever. His daughter Flora was dead and he needed answers. Here, for the first time, he tells the story in his own words - special feature article in The Sunday Times December 8, 2002.
Background information:
Prof Black believes the timescale for the entire appeal process could take up to two years. He said: "An application has not yet gone in, but it is being prepared and I would expect it to be submitted in about six months. He will walk out of Barlinnie long before he has served his sentence." He also forecast that Megrahi would not be successful with his application to the European Court in Strasbourg, but would win through the SCRC. Prof Black told delegates to the Institute of Contemporary Scotland’s Young Scotland Programme that he was convinced of Megrahi’s innocence.
Background information:
Below a transcript from CNN, November 9
(begin)"Family members of the people killed when Pan AM Flight 103 was blown up over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988 were meeting Saturday to discuss a settlement proposed by the Libyan government. CNN's Jason Bellini was in New Jersey and reported on the complex proposal and the reaction of the families.
BELLINI: This is going to be the very first meeting of the families to discuss this proposal. These are the families of the 270 victims of Pan Am Flight 103 -- 189 of them were American, another 11 people died on the ground in Lockerbie, Scotland. Not all of them are comfortable with this deal. There are controversial elements to it because Libya, the United States and the United Nations would be required to do certain things before the families receive their money, these $10 million for each family. They get their money in several stages. First, Libya would admit to its responsibility for the bombing, something it has not yet done. Then, before they would get some of the money, the United Nations would have to lift sanctions against Libya. Then the United States would have to lift sanctions, then they would get more money.
They would get the rest after the United States took Libya off of its list of terrorist countries, something Libya desperately wants as [Libyans] want to regain credibility within the international community and be able to make better trade deals, especially deals relating to oil. Other family members feel better about this deal, saying they think that Libya is now ready to put an end to this and reach this financial settlement. We spoke with Bert Ammerman, whose brother died on Pan Am Flight 103.
(Videotape)
AMMERMAN: In my years of experience you never know what Libya is going to do. They get up to a point and then they pull out again, but what is interesting about this is that the family attorneys have negotiated a settlement with representatives from the Libyan Central Committee and I firmly believe both countries would like to have this eliminated as quickly as possible so they can start selling oil and they can start working with Libya again. So there is some seriousness to it, now the families have to make a decision.
(Videotape ends)
BELLINI: U.S. State Department sources tell CNN that they are very skeptical that this deal is really going to happen. They do not think that Libya is going to admit to this bombing. Its something they have not done since 1988, and that would certainly have to happen for this deal to go forward. (transcript end)
However, the lack of a compensation agreement in the 1989 Pan Am bombing continues to weigh on prospects for renewed ties with Washington, which has imposed sanctions on Libya, as has the United Nations (news - web sites). The U.N. sanctions were suspended in 1999 but have not been lifted. Shalqam, speaking to The Associated Press, said that Libya refuses to pay punitive compensation for the families of victims. "Libya as a regime will never accept the responsibility because we are completely innocent," he said. "But I think there is a readiness on both sides, the Libyan and American sides, to find a compromise to get rid of this problem." Asked how long it might take to reach a settlement, he replied: "We hope we can do it within months, I hope."
A New York lawyer for many victims, James Kreindler, said in May that negotiators were close to an agreement. However, some families rejected conditions attached to the purported amount of US$2.7 billion, allegedly to be paid out in chunks as U.N. and U.S. sanctions were progressively lifted. During his visit here, Shalqam met with President Jacques Chirac. French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin had met with Libyan leader Col. Moammar Gadhafi days earlier in Tripoli. The U.N. Security Council has demanded that Libya compensate families of victims as part of a process leading to Libya's reinstatement as a member in good standing of the international system. In addition to compensation, the Security Council also demanded that Libya admit responsibility for the bombing, renounce terrorism and disclose all information it has about the bombing.
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Instead, the blame will be pinned on a few low-ranking officials and Abdelbaset Al- Megrahi, who is now serving life in a Scots jail for the terror attack. New York law firm Kreindler and Kreindler, who also act for victims of September 11 disaster, wrote: "We have been informed there may be significant developments under way regarding the trilateral negotiations on Libya's acceptance of responsibility. "At the request of the Libyan delegation, we now expect to be in Paris from October 8 through to October 11." America and Britain are keen to forge a new relationship with Libya as they gather support from Arab states for their war on terrorism. A source close to the negotiations said: "This is the first clear indication that the admission of responsibility will come very soon.
"Clearly, discussions are now at the crucial stage and it is a matter of how any statement will be worded." The move will also pave the way for Libya's compensation deal, where they will pay £2.5million to every family who lost a loved one. Last month, we revealed the Libyan government had bought a £500,000 home in a Glasgow suburb for Megrahi's wife Aisha and their children.
"The children had nothing to do with Lockerbie but they are paying the price. They are probably coping better than I am but some of them do not understand what is going on." Aisha is being supported by friends and has the financial backing of a charity with links to President Gaddafi. Her youngest son was just a few months old when Megrahi was flown to Holland to stand trial for the bombing. Since his appeal failed, she has had just a few hours every month to see her husband. Living here means she will see him every week. She said: "Life is very difficult, especially looking after small children. "Bringing them up on my own is very hard. But I have shed all my tears and I will fight to the last to prove my husband's innocence."
Intelligence agency experts says the move is part of a series of tactical moves by Gaddafi and Western leaders to allow Libya to return to the international fold. America and Britain are keen to pave the way for a new relationship with Libya as they attempt to gather support from Arab states for their rolling war on terrorism. A source close to the Libyan government said: "The statement will say Megrahi planned and carried out the crime on the orders of the officials who had no authority. "It will make clear Gaddafi had no knowledge of the plan and did not sanction it. "In fact, it will say he would never have approved it, under any circumstances."
Intelligence expert Grant Staten said Libya was preparing to "sacrifice" Megrahi for the greater good of the country. The America-based authority on Middle East said: "Whatever the truth, Gaddafi will now realise it was a foregone conclusion that his government had to admit to some part in this. "But they will not be seen to be told to do so by the West. However, they also appreciate the times the world is now in and, let's face it, they do not want to be on the wrong side." Until now, Gaddafi has criticised Megrahi's conviction at Holland's Camp Zeist. And former South African President Nelson Mandela, who visited the Megrahi at Glasgow's Barlinnie jail, expressed concern at the guilty verdict handed down by the Scots court. Others, including veteran Labour MP Tam Dalyell and some of the families of the Lockerbie victims, believe Megrahi is innocent.
One well-placed diplomatic source said: "Megrahi is only one man and they will sacrifice him in order to get back into the international fold. The United Nations resolutions have ordered them to accept responsibility for the bombing and pay compensation. "They have to comply. If that means turning their backs on Megrahi, then so be it." The news could shatter plans by Megrahi's Scots lawyers to take his appeal to the European Court of Human Rights. Last month, we revealed the secret deals behind the Megrahi family's move to Scotland. The British Government agreed to relocate his wife and children, in return for the Libyan being handed over for trial. The Libyan government bought a £500,000 home in an upmarket Glasgow suburb for Megrahi's wife Aisha and three of their sons. Protected by bodyguards and round-the-clock CCTV surveillance, the family are just a 30-minute drive from Barlinnie. Until now, Gaddafi has been footing the bill.
The county-commissioned memorial is one of the first of several monuments planned throughout the country, from a fountain in Elmhurst, Ill., to a bronze-and-granite monument in Cleveland, Tenn. In the seven-column memorial here, there is an empty space where one more column can be added - an intentional reminder that terrorist attacks can still occur. Peter Kousoulis needs no reminder because he relives the 9/ 11 attacks every day. "I'm living it every day," he told the crowd at Wednesday' s dedication. His sister Danielle, a Haddon Township native, worked on the 104th floor of the World Trade Center' s South Tower and died when the building collapsed. Her family still lives in Haddon Township. "Every day for the past year I see planes crash into the two towers and then come crashing down," Peter Kousoulis said. "I can't believe it's been a year."
And it's been nearly 14 years since Robert Monetti lost his son when a bomb exploded on Pan Am Flight 103 on Dec. 21, 1988. Richard Monetti, of Cherry Hill, would have turned 34 years old on the 9/11 anniversary. Since the Pan Am explosion, Monetti has lobbied for better airline security. The events of last year, he said, are proof that the state of airline security hasn't improved. "We all deserve to find out what went wrong," Monetti said. But for Kousoulis, the answer to that question is simple - he lost his sister before he could tell her how much he loved her. "We must tell the people in our lives how much we feel about them," he said. "We never know when it will be too late."
Local artist John Gionotti designed the gazebo-like memorial. Nash said the monument, with a circular bench and cherry tree in the middle, offers a place where residents can "remember and reflect upon the victims." Wednesday afternoon, several hours after the dedication ceremony, the monument was empty. All that was left was a blue vase with a single red rose, beneath the pillar naming nine South Jerseyans who died exactly one year ago.
In Glasgow, Mr MacKechnie said Megrahi, currently held in solitary confinement at the city's Barlinnie jail, was the victim of a "serious miscarriage of justice". He claimed Government officials from the US and Britain publicly asserted his client's guilt before the trial started. The lawyer accused America of being "selective" with the intelligence it allowed the court to see. "This is a black day for the Scottish justice system," Mr MacKechnie said. "I firmly believe that Abdelbaset is entirely innocent of the Lockerbie murders. "My view is not unique. It is a view shared by an ever-growing number of academics and jurists in this country and throughout the world."
The European court in Strasbourg has no formal power to overturn the decision of a Scottish court. But Mr MacKechnie said he believed the Government would bow to the inevitable if the judgment went against it.
Protected by Libyan bodyguards and round-the-clock CCTV surveillance, they are just a 30- minute drive from Barlinnie jail where Megrahi is serving a life sentence. The boys will be educated in state schools at a cost of £100,000 to Scottish taxpayers. The five-bedroom villa was bought with funds from a group headed by Saif Gaddafi, the son of the Libyan president Muammar Gaddafi. Saif heads the Gaddafi International Foundation, which is also bankrolling Megrahi's appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.
Last night, a Downing Street source said: "This was an agreement that was made when the two suspects were handed over for trial in 1998. "If one or both of them were found guilty, the Government agreed there would be no obstacle to their families setting up home in the UK."
American Daniel Cohen, who lost his daughter Theodora in the bombing, claims that the US victims' families have been outraged by our revelations. Last night, he said: "We are all very shocked. What other special privileges is this man going to get? "What are the British Government thinking of? What other foreign prisoner, let alone the man convicted of Scotland's worst mass murder, would be able to get his family into the country?" He added: "The US State Department at the time had told us about a number of deals but we never got to know the full extent of those. "Now it just sticks in my throat that this was one of them. We feel as if we have been conned."
Speaking from the home he shares with wife Susan in New Jersey, he also hit out at the expense of educating the killer's kids. He said: "I know how much I pay in taxes and for the people of Scotland to have to pay for their education is a situation I just find incredible."
Immigration expert Jack Plancey said he was staggered by our story. He said: "This family have either fast- tracked the system or this has been in place for many months. "I have never heard of a man convicted of any crime, never mind mass murder, being able to get his family into the country so fast. It is unheard of." Earlier this year, Britain refused pleas, including a request from former South African president Nelson Mandela, to transfer Megrahi to a jail in a Muslim country. Prime Minister Tony Blair insisted that was never going to happen. But some families say there is a positive side to Megrahi's family moving to Scotland.
Pamela Dix, whose brother Brian was killed on the doomed flight, said: "Whatever our feelings about Megrahi, his wife and children have committed no crime. "I would rather his family were here than he were moved to a prison in another country to be nearer them. "If Megrahi's children attend school here then, in the future, perhaps they will be able to take back to Libya some understanding of Scottish values and society."
Last night, politicians were staying tight-lipped on the deal. Downing Street refused to comment and Scottish Secretary Helen Liddell claimed she had been unaware the family were in Scotland because the issue was not her responsibility. Her spokesman said: "It is something that is not within her remit." A spokeswoman for First Minister Jack McConnell said he had been kept abreast of the situation but had not been privy to detailed discussions. The Home Office last night refused to discuss individual cases. A source admitted there were a number of agreements made between Britain and Libya at the time of the two suspects' transfer to Camp Zeist in Holland to stand trial. The source said: "Some of those agreements were made public and others were kept private."
Zurich, September 09, 2002
Dear Mr Prime Minister
I address this letter to you in view of my position as being also innocent victim carrying heavy damage from the so called Lockerbie-affair but also in the name of numerous people and organizations who have become victims:
-The people of Libya
-Col Muammar al-Gaddafi
-Mr Amin Khalifa Fhimah, released after being accused
-Mr Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, found guilty and sentenced life-long imprisonment
-The family of Mr Amin Khalifa Fhimah
-The family of Mr Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, his wife and five minor kids
-Malta Air, Malta
-MEBO Communications Ltd, Zurich, Switzerland
-Mr. Erwin Meister and Edwin Bollier, owners of MEBO Ltd
The defence team of MEBO has carried out comprehensive and intensive research work after the termination of the doubtful Lockerbie-trial in Kamp van Zeist. The result of this investigation is clear and sensational: We can prove, that there was NO "bomb-bag" from AirMalta Flight KM 180 to PanAm 103A! The alleged "Malta-Bomb" bag Nbr B-8849 was a rebooked/rerouted brown Samsonite hard-shell-suitcase from Berlin-Tegel (Flight PA 637)!
If this finding proves to be the truth, the whole "Malta-Story" will collapse. Since the indictment is strongly based on that Malta-issue, it will no longer be of relevance and the trial against Mr Abdelbaset al Megrahi must go into revision. Let me quote here United Nations observer Professor Hans Koechler: "The publication to the judgement in Kamp van Zeist is political"!
All in all, we had to gain the conviction, that Mr Abdelbaset al Megrahi became political prisoner based on a negligent, conspirative construct against Libya with the result that he is innocently serving in a Scottish prison. I invite you to have a look into our various publications "BREAKING NEWS" Section A-B-C-D on our homepage. Since your Labour MP Tam Dalyell announced in late July 2002 that "the Lockerbie bomber was innocent", we strongly believe that an official investigation should take place immediately, taking into account the new facts and findings in order to avoid THE justice-scandal of the century. We, being second grade victims, shall not spare any effort and undertake any legal action in order to fight for the truth in the "Lockerbie-affair".
I do ask you take action in the interests of truth finding and justice and I would like to respectfully submit the following proposals:
-enable and enforce fresh inquiry with specific focus on Bag No B-8849 and the fragment of MEBO manufactured Timer MST-13.
-release Mr Abdelbaset al Megrahi during the time of fresh inquiry under electronic house detention (GPS surveillance) in this house in Glasgow together with his wife and sons.
-clarification demands for a bail deposit of as much as ten million pounds.
Thank you for your attention.
Very truly yours
MEBO LTD
Edwin Bollier
Brian Murray said: "I think it's more of a safety issue for the rest of the class - the teachers and the pupils. Who knows what people think? If somebody's lost a loved one at Lockerbie, and that's my biggest concern, we've now got a family, very, very high profile and somebody could hold a grudge." Mr Murray's Local Authority, East Renfrewshire Council, cannot confirm or deny the presence of Megrahi's children at one of their schools, but tried to allay security fears.
John Wilson, the Director of Education at East Renfrewshire Council said: "We don't actually give out information on individual pupils but what I am prepared to say is that all of our young people enrolled for this particaulr session are safe and secure and they're working very well. We've actually had a very good start to this particular academic session and we have had no instances to be concerned about." It is understood Megrahi's arrival at Barlinnie prompted a diplomatic deal that saw his family move to Scotland too. But the need to ensure that the sins of the father are not visited on the son has had the side of effect that some parents feel they have been left in the dark.
The scrapyard is located close to the town of Tattershall in Lincolnshire, a mile or so out of town, on the B1792 towards Woodhall Spa. http://www.multimap.co.uk/map/browse.cgi?GridE=521515&GridN=358036&client=public&X=521515&Y=358036&scale=100000&place=Tattershall,+Lincolnshire&db=hcgaz&local=&type=&start=&limit=&coordsys=gb&overviewmap=
It's on the left side of the road. There's a small river, at right angles to the road. On the side of the river further away from Tattershall, there's an enormous car scrapyard. On the side of the river nearest Tattershall, there's a small road marked 'private'. Drive down there for half a mile or less, through some trees???, then it opens out - there's a grass airstrip runs parallel to the river, you can see the car scrapyard across the river. At the end of the road is a hanger, some buildings, and the aircraft scrapyard. The 103 wreckage is in a compound, not secure, open to the elements. There's quite a lot of other aircraft bits as well.
Last time I was there, they were building a small dirt racetrack behind the aircraft scrapyard - the kind of place for kids to ride dirt bikes, 4x4s etc. When I first wandered in it was just 'an aviation scrapyard I had heard about' - can't remember who told me. Had no idea the 747 was there. Wandered into the compound, thought 'this was bloody big and very broken'... saw the Pan-Am logo on cargo containers, thought 'bloody hell... it can't be....', then saw the cockpit section, exactly as it looked on TV... 'oh f*ck it is!!!!!!' Very wierd feeling.
I have absolutely nothing to say on the subject of 103, trials, 747 cargo doors or anything else! Just thought you guys might be interested in my story, and the precise location of the wreckage."
read more at http://www.corestore.org/scrap.htm
"Abu Nidal said during an inner-circle meeting of the leadership of the Revolutionary Council, '...the reports which link the Lockerbie act to others are false reports. We are behind what happened'," Atef Abu Bakr, once a member of Abu Nidal's Fatah-Revolutionary Council, told Al-Hayat newspaper. Swire, whose daughter Flora was killed in the bombing, has long demanded an independent inquiry into Lockerbie to uncover how much British intelligence services knew about the attacks. "We certainly have part or all of at least eight intelligence warnings received in good time beforehand, some of them incredibly detailed, and I think we have a right to know why these didn't lead to any form of special protection for our loved ones," he told BBC radio on Friday.
Swire's demands were backed by Tam Dalyell, the longest serving member of Britain's parliament, who called on the government to investigate Abu Bakr's allegations "as a matter of the utmost urgency". "If these allegations are true they blow everything relating to Lockerbie out of the water, including the trial in Holland," Dalyell said. Mr Dalyell has long argued that the Libyans were not responsible for the attack and that it was carried out by Nidal. He says the Foreign Office must now investigate Bakr's claims "as a matter of the utmost urgency". "I understand that close associates of Nidal are now saying that he, and he alone, was responsible for Lockerbie," he said.
Hans Koechler, one of five U.N. observers who followed the trial as part of the deal with Libya, said Abu Bakr's comments underlined the urgency of calls he has already made for an independent public inquiry into the entire Lockerbie case. "The fact that Libya had hired a defence team that grossly neglected its professional duties and chose not to use most of the legal means available to Megrahi's defence requires an explanation," Koechler said in a statement released in Vienna.
Megrahi's lawyer, Eddie MacKechnie, said he was applying to the European Court of Human Rights to challenge the Libyan's life sentence, which was upheld by Scottish appeal judges in the Netherlands in March. But he said the allegations about Abu Nidal's involvement offered little fresh support for his client's legal battle. "I'm not aware of there being any usable evidence arising from this second hand confession, though I do know that Abu Nidal was thought to have links to the Lockerbie murders right from the very beginning," MacKechnie said. The group led by Abu Nidal, one of the world's most-wanted men before Iraqi authorities on Wednesday announced he had committed suicide, was blamed for attacks in which hundreds were killed or wounded, mostly in the 1970s and 1980s. Abu Nidal set up his headquarters in the Libyan capital Tripoli in 1987. He was put under house arrest when Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi came under pressure to crack down on militants after the Lockerbie bombing.
And later the same day from Associated Press:
The Scottish prosecutors' office dismissed a published report Friday that Abu Nidal, the Palestinian terrorist whose death was announced in Iraq this week, was behind the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, for which a Libyan has been convicted. "We deal, and have dealt with, evidence – not rumor or speculation, especially about allegedly dead terrorists," a Scottish Crown Office official said on condition of anonymity. The Scottish Crown Office spokeswoman said Friday that the Lord Advocate was "not sure what a public inquiry can properly explore, especially after this passage of time." She said there had already been a fatal accident inquiry and some specialist inquiries, and that airport security had recently been the subject of "much scrutiny."
Only two weeks before, a caller claiming to belong to the group phoned the United States embassy in Helsinki warning a plane flying from Frankfurt to the US would be attacked. The call was not taken seriously at the time, and as the investigation began suspicion shifted - first to radical Palestinian group the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command, and then to Libya. In 1988 Abu Nidal and his group were based in the Libyan capital, Tripoli.
If he was behind the Lockerbie attack, it is hard to believe he would have acted without the knowledge and approval of the Libyan authorities. But Abu Nidal also had close links with other states in the Middle East, including Syria, which has long been suspected of being behind the bombing. So by themselves these new allegations are not likely to still the debate about who was responsible.
Also: from THE SCOTSMAN, same date:
The group led by Abu Nidal, one of the world’s most wanted men, has been blamed for attacks in which hundreds of people were killed or wounded, mostly in the 1970s and 1980s. Abu Nidal set up his headquarters in Tripoli, the Libyan capital, in 1987 but was put under house arrest after Col Muammar al-Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, came under pressure to crack down on militants after the Lockerbie bombing. Mr Abu Bakr and another dissident split from Abu Nidal’s group in late 1989, almost a year after the bombing. After the Lockerbie attack, Mr Abu Bakr was quoted as extending condolences to victims on behalf of Abu Nidal’s group, which was suspected at the time of being behind the atrocity. Other speculation, which emerged at the Libyan agent’s trial, focused on the possible involvement of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, headed by the Palestinian guerrilla leader Ahmed Jibril.
Iraq has said that Abu Nidal put a pistol in his mouth and killed himself to avoid arrest on charges of illegally entering the country, but, on Wednesday, the Fatah-Revolutionary Council said that its leader had been assassinated and President George Bush questioned whether he was even dead. Mr Bush, who has made ousting the Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein a top priority, expressed deep scepticism about Baghdad’s version of the death of Abu Nidal, 65. After a meeting with his top national security advisers in Crawford, Texas, Mr Bush said: "I found it interesting that they said he committed suicide with four bullet wounds ... so I’m not exactly sure how he died. "We just have to wait and make sure, in fact, that he did die," the president added.
If Abu Nidal’s death were confirmed, Mr Bush said, it would show that "no terrorist can hide forever". In a rare media appearance, Taher Jaleel al-Haboush, head of the Iraqi intelligence service, produced pictures of a bloodied and dying man he claimed was Abu Nidal. He showed photographs of forged passports and ID cards and an arsenal of weapons that he said had been found at Abu Nidal’s flat. Mr Haboush said that coded messages found at the flat showed that the guerrilla leader had been on the payroll of a foreign country. Mr Haboush did not name the country. "A security unit went to inform him [Abu Nidal] that he had entered Iraq illegally and that he should accompany them for interrogation," Mr Haboush said. "At first he welcomed the idea and then asked to be excused. He went to his room, locked the door and a shot was heard. He had fired a shot into his mouth. He was taken to hospital but died."
"The negotiations appear to be stalled. For months the lawyers were saying they were a hair's breadth from a deal but all that has stopped. Now they say the meeting in late August may be put off," said the relative, who asked not to be named. But Kreindler denied there was any serious obstacle to agreement on the compensation package. "I think we have resolved it but we are keeping it quiet until the (Libyan) delegation calls to say 'Yes, it's official and it's authorised.' It's a lot of money, it's complicated and it requires hammering out some provisions," he said. "The Libyan delegation told us that they are making a lot of progress but they need a little more time to make it official."
If Libya pays the compensation and makes a statement accepting responsibility, it would fulfil the conditions for lifting permanently the U.N. sanctions imposed in 1992. Under the compensation offer publicised in May, Libya would pay the $2.7 billion in three instalments as the United Nations and the United States meet three Libyan conditions, starting with the permanent removal of the U.N. sanctions. But the U.S. media was generally critical of the offer and some of the Lockerbie families have rejected the deal.
Daniel and Susan Cohen, who lost their daughter Theodora in the explosion, wrote to U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell on Friday urging him to insist on a clear statement of responsibility from the Libyan government. "What we fear is being cooked up here is a statement so weak and general that it will be in essence a 'no fault' statement," wrote the Cohens, part of a group of relatives who have want Gaddafi to be held accountable. "That would be utterly unacceptable to us -- and we hope that you ... would also declare such a statement unacceptable to the United States government," their letter added.
In this episode of MINUTE BY MINUTE, emotional interviews with eyewitnesses and surviving family members reveal the personal tragedies of this international disaster. Interviews also include a rare appearance by the still-shaken air traffic controller, Alan Topp, who had the last conversation with Pan Am 103's pilot and witnessed the plane's haunting radar image breaking into pieces. Through interviews with former FAA lead bomb expert, Walter Korsgaard and the former CIA Chief of Counter-Terrorism, Vince Cannistraro, viewers get a glimpse into the unprecedented investigation that questioned 15,000 people and examined information and evidence in more than 30 different countries.
Chalgam's remarks, after 2-1/2 hours of talks between Gaddafi and a government minister, were hailed by British officials as Libya's clearest public commitment yet to meet the United Nations demands. Junior Foreign Office Minister Mike O'Brien also cautioned that words must be translated into action before further progress could be made towards ending years of hostility with Britain and the United States. Washington -- which has been holding three-way talks with Britain and Libya on Lockerbie -- still doubts Gaddafi has abandoned his fiery brand of Arab radicalism, support for militants and alleged quest for weapons of mass destruction. It accused him in May of still seeking to acquire chemical weapons -- a charge dismissed by Chalgam, who said Libya had no time for such "silly" projects.
Jim Swire, a spokesman for families of Lockerbie victims, said Chalgam's remarks on Lockerbie were "the first time a visible and active member of the Libyan government has made such a comment." "As such it's a step forward," he told Reuters. "But it's only one step down what has already been a tortuous path." Three years ago the United Nations suspended, but did not formally lift, sanctions imposed on Libya over Lockerbie when Gaddafi handed over two Libyan suspects wanted for trial. One was convicted last year and the other was acquitted. Lawyers acting for Libya were reported in May to have agreed to pay $10 million each to the families of the 270 people killed in the Lockerbie bombing. Libya immediately denied any state involvement in the deal. British officials say that Libya fears that accepting responsibility and offering compensation for Lockerbie would open it up to unlimited financial demands, as well as legal suits against its officials similar to the case brought against Chile's former leader Augusto Pinochet.
Chalgam also said any agreement on compensation would have to look at international precedents, pointedly referring to the accidental 1988 shooting down of an Iranian passenger airliner over the Gulf by the United States navy. "What's the amount that America offered for the victims of the Iranian aircraft?" he asked. The United States offered to pay $131.8 million. Analysts say the likely way through the legal and diplomatic minefield is for Libya to take responsibility for the acts of its officials but say they were not government sanctioned. "Libya will accept responsibility, but insist on its innocence," said Saad Djebbar, a lawyer and associate fellow at the Royal International Institute of International Affairs. Although distrust is likely to run deep after many years of hostility, Britain says Libya should now be given the chance to show it has changed tack.
Swire said he knew of no evidence that Gaddafi had been involved in terrorism in the last decade and most families of British victims were ready to see his country rehabilitated if it could show it had turned its back on the past. "He did provide help by supplying information about weapons to the IRA," he said, referring to Gaddafi's earlier efforts to arm Irish guerrillas fighting British rule in Northern Ireland. "So already he has a track record of turning around." Djebbar said he believed a formula could be reached on Lockerbie which would satisfy all sides. "I'm confident a form of words can be found," he said. "The conditions are right now for this matter to be resolved...As far as Lockerbie is concerned, we are nearing an end".
Jim Swire, a spokesman for families of victims of the Lockerbie bombing, cautiously welcomed Libya's comments. "I think we should regard it as a significant step forward, but of course, paying compensation is only one of the things that Libya has to do if she wants to get the U.N sanctions permanently removed," he told Sky News. Chalgam's comments came after Gaddafi held what officials said were his first talks with a British minister since he seized power in a 1969 revolution.The talks cap a cautious re-engagement between the former foes after years of hostility following the fatal shooting of a British policewoman outside Libya's London embassy, British-backed U.S. raids on Libya and the Lockerbie bombing.
U.N. sanctions imposed on Libya have been suspended. British officials said Chalgam's comments were the clearest signal yet that Libya would comply with remaining obligations to ensure their final lifting. Chalgam said he hoped the improved relations with Britain, which for years demonised Libya as a terrorist pariah, could help mend Tripoli's ties with Washington. "We are completely keen to arrive at reconciliation and normalisation with the U.S," he said. Washington has remained sceptical of Libyan intentions and says it is still seeking to acquire chemical weapons. Chalgam scoffed at the U.S. allegations, saying his country was too busy fighting poverty in Africa to dabble in weapons of mass destruction. "We don't have time or money to spend in such silly work," he said. "We are ready to comply with international law and with international efforts, especially in this (issue)," he said.
Gaddafi, who wore a yellow-rimmed sunhat and dark glasses, smiled and flashed a two-fingered victory sign to reporters, left in a sleek black motorcade after the talks. O'Brien brought a letter from British Prime Minister Tony Blair welcoming the recent improved ties. He said Libya was prepared to sign a global convention on chemical arms allowing for international inspections and was looking at cooperating with a code of conduct on ballistic missiles. Blair said he was also pleased by Libya's commitment to support Washington's declared "war on terror" after the September 11 U.S. airliner attacks. "I welcome the fact that Colonel Gaddafi called on the Libyan people to work with us in combating al Qaeda, which the Libyan people see as just as much a threat to themselves as well," he said.
O'Brien later said Gaddafi, long reviled in London which accused him of supporting Irish guerrillas fighting British rule in Northern Ireland, "said all the right things". "The important thing now is that the words are subject to proof. We've got to insure we get results," he said.
a. (11th July) Mr. Dalyell: Before the Foreign Secretary leaves the United States, is he minded, before the recess, to accede to the request made to him by the Lockerbie relatives that there should be a public inquiry into the international aspects of Lockerbie?
Mr Straw: I explained to the families of the Lockerbie relatives that I did
not see a case for a public inquiry into what had happened, but that I was
going to look into whether other arrangements for scrutiny could be
established. I realise that my hon. Friend put a number of detailed
questions while I was away from the Chamber and I shall write to him in
response to them.
(http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm200102/cmhansrd/cm02
0711/debtext/20711-31.htm)
b. (23rd July) Mr Dalyell: Pursuant to his recent meeting with the Lockerbie relatives, when he expects to make a decision on setting up a public inquiry into the international aspects of Lockerbie.
PUSS, FCO Mr O'Brien: As the Foreign Secretary told the House on 11 July, he
has explained to the families of the Lockerbie victims that he does not see
a case for a public inquiry................
c. (23rd July) PUSS, FCO Mr O'Brien: ......As the Government cannot see the
potential benefit of an inquiry, it is hard to justify such a lengthy and
expensive process. With regret for the disappointment that this will cause
to the families, I therefore have to repeat the Foreign Secretary's
message - the same has been said in the Chamber on several occasions - that
we will not be calling a public inquiry.
"It needs only a brave man, a brave decision, a brave heart." The prisoner has told Mr Donnan he is writing his memoirs from the adapted cell suite where he is kept and that he also passes the time reading and watching television. Al Megrahi, who at times struggles with English, explained: "I spend my day reading books and watching television. I like watching football. I support Arsenal from 1970, the first trip for me to Britain. I believe Arsenal more lucky this year than me." The Libyan asked Mr Donnan about his holidays in the opening of one letter and also talked about his own wife and children coming to visit him in Scotland. In total, he has sent eight letters to the ex-soldier's home in Kilwinning, Ayrshire, since being transferred to Barlinnie in March. He writes in capital letters and has put "In the name of God the merciful" in Arabic at the top of at least one.
Mr Donnan, 31, was among hundreds of young soldiers dispatched to Lockerbie after the Boeing 747 jet was blown up in 1988. He was later diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and was allowed to leave the regiment in 1993. The founder of a charity for other traumatised soldiers called the British Veterans' Association, Mr Donnan is convinced of al Megrahi's innocence and it was he who first wrote to the prisoner. He said: "I felt I could sympathise with him being locked away in a strange country and I felt it would maybe help him cope. "To start with, I told him how I was involved at Lockerbie and how I had followed his case with interest. "In his replies, he keeps saying the truth will appear one day." He described the bomber as a "very deep and spiritual man" who he hoped would be helped in the future.
Mr Donnan, who also patrolled mass graves during the Gulf war and served in Northern Ireland during his military career, has written a book about the trauma he has suffered called Fighting Back - One Man's Struggle For Justice Against The British Army. He said: "Nothing prepared me for what I witnessed as a young soldier. In Lockerbie, I was 17 years old, picking up bits of people and was just expected to get on with it.
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However, Stephen Jakobi, of Fair Trials Abroad, said these problems went far beyond Megrahi's case. "The problem with people who are away from their country is the same for everyone. Cultural, religious and language problems are the main ones," he said, adding that there are some 4000 British prisoners abroad facing the same problems as Megrahi. Mr Jakobi added: "Their families can't visit them and they can't speak the language either so it is a much more universal problem."
"Libya agreed to hand over the suspects to a third country and that if convicted by the Scottish court they would be imprisoned in Scotland," said a spokesman. "This situation has not changed." Mr Mandela's call followed a meeting with Megrahi in jail. "It will make it easier for his family to visit him if he is in a place like the Kingdom of Morocco, Tunisia or Egypt," he said. He was concerned that Megrahi was "all alone" in the prison, describing it as "a psychological persecution". Mr Mandela also used the opportunity to call for a fresh appeal in Megrahi's case. He hoped to meet Prime Minister Tony Blair and US President George W Bush to discuss the matter.
A Downing Street spokesman said there were "no plans at present" for the Prime Minister to meet Mr Mandela. The arrangements for Megrahi's imprisonment in Scotland, in a segregated unit, were agreed with the Libyan government before the trial, he added. The Scottish Executive said it was "most unlikely" that Megrahi would be allowed to serve his sentence outside Scotland. There were circumstances in which a foreign national could be transferred to another country, but these did not apply in Megrahi's case.
Such a move could only take place in accordance with the terms of the Council of Europe Convention on the transfer of sentenced prisoners, to which Libya is not a signatory. A transfer would also be strongly contested by the relatives of those who died in the atrocity.
Mandela calls for fresh Lockerbie appealMandela said that although prison officials were treating Megrahi well, he was being harassed by some of the other prisoners. The veteran anti-apartheid activist, who spent 27 years in jail himself, also called for a fresh appeal against Megrahi's conviction, which has been criticised by South Africa's ruling African National Congress. "From the point of view of fundamental principles of natural law, it would be fair if he is given a chance to appeal either to the Privy Council or the European Court of Human Rights," Mandela said.
Mandela played a key role in persuading his close friend Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi to hand over Megrahi and another Libyan suspect for trial to a special Scottish court sitting at Camp Zeist in the Netherlands.
Tam Dalyell, Britain's longest-serving member of parliament, who has campaigned tirelessly on every aspect of the Lockerbie tragedy, welcomed Mandela's comments. "I believe Mr Megrahi to be innocent," Dalyell told Reuters. "I believe there's every reason for a fresh appeal, considering the decision of the defence at Zeist not to put him in the witness box." Dalyell, who held a long meeting with Megrahi last month, says the Libyan was "desperate" to take the stand but was talked out of it by his lawyers.
Jim Swire, a spokesman for the victims' families, declined to comment on Mandela's call for a new appeal -- though he is known also to be unhappy about Megrahi's conviction -- but he welcomed the visit. "There can't be many people in the world better qualified than Mr Mandela to examine the conditions under which Mr Megrahi is being held," he told Reuters. "As the person who did so much to make the trial possible, he must feel a sense of responsibility," he added. Mandela has been a staunch ally of Gaddafi despite criticism at home and from some Western nations, and has criticised the West for failing to lift all sanctions against Libya since the Lockerbie trial. He said on Monday he hoped to meet Prime Minister Tony Blair and U.S. President George W. Bush to discuss the case.
(Sky News 11/06) Megrahi's new lawyer claimed after the meeting that fresh evidence had emerged that was not available at the time of the trial in Camp Zeist, near Utrecht. Eddie MacKechnie said he had learnt that a £7.8 million payment was made two days after the atrocity by the government of Iran to the Palestinian terror organisation, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command." The information had come from a former CIA officer who had given details of times, dates and bank accounts. It was "inconceivable", he said, that the payment was not linked to the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie on Dec 21, 1988. He confirmed that he was considering taking the case to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, and to the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission, which deals with miscarriages of justice. Neither body would have the power to free Megrahi, but the commission could send the case back to the appeal court.
(BBC NEWS (!)) Nelson Mandela also promised to meet relatives of victims of the Lockerbie bombing after visiting Megrahi. Mr Mandela told a packed media conference: "I am coming back here in July and it is my intention to visit Scotland and speak to all the victims of Lockerbie." UK relatives spokesman Dr Jim Swire, whose daughter Flora was among the victims, said: "Personally I would strongly support Mr Mandela's call for a further review of the verdict itself. "I don't think it serves the purposes of humanity to have this man having a desperate time in prison. "My main objective is to pat Mr Mandela on the back and thank him for the part he played in making the trial possible. Before he joined there was complete deadlock."
(DAILY RECORD) Other victims' families had earlier criticised the trip as a PR exercise for Megrahi. Dr Swire, whose daughter Flora, 23, died in the tragedy, said: "Before the trial, Libya tried to argue that if found guilty they must serve sentence in an Arab country but they were told firmly sentences would be served in a Scottish prison. "That issue has already been covered. "No one could be better qualified to judge prison conditions than Nelson Mandela and I think we should listen to what he has to say. "A second opinion might be a good idea. What about asking Amnesty International to have a look to see what they think?"
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There was also support for Megrahi at Barlinnie yesterday from the Gaddafi Foundation of Libya, which is to pay for his future legal costs and for Megrahi's family to stay in Scotland. Mohamed Ismais, a spokesman, said: "We're confident that he is innocent."
However, Mr Mandela's comments were criticised by Susan Cohen, from New Jersey, who lost her 20-year-old daughter, Theodora, in the bombing. "I feel Nelson Mandela's behaviour is disgusting in this case," she said. "He is paying back his old debts, and I think people in Scotland should feel insulted that he has questioned their judicial system."Megrahi is a mass murderer and to speak about how he is alone is pathetic."
Jim Swire, a spokesman for the victims' families in the UK, who is known to be unhappy about Megrahi's conviction, welcomed the visit. "There can't be many people in the world better qualified than Mr Mandela to examine the conditions under which Mr Megrahi is being held," he said. "I have no feelings of vengeance. Personally I would strongly support Mr Mandela's call for a further review of the verdict itself."I don't think it serves the purposes of humanity to have this man having a desperate time in prison."
Comment from The Scotsman June 11
Simon Pia's Diary : Spoken like a lady
THE elite corps of Scotland’s grizzled crime hacks met their match in former president Nelson Mandela. As they gathered in Barlinnie yesterday during the great man’s visit to the Gaddafi cafe, Andrew Walker of the Daily Record asked Mr Mandela if he felt the Lockerbie bomber was being harassed. With a wicked grin, and to howls of derision, Mr Mandela exclaimed: "I can’t hear you, you speak like a lady." A sentiment which no doubt the hardened hack will pray was not picked up in the prison shower block. Nor in the corridors of the Record’s headquarters.
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Tawfiq appeared composed and murmured verses from Quran as the conviction and sentence were announced. He told reporters from behind bars in the courtroom that the verdict was "unjust and not based on any evidence." "I challenge the judge to bring evidence," Tawfiq said. "All that I wanted was to offer testimony about an international case that has nothing to do with Egypt, and I don't intend to attack Egypt at all." Tawfiq was charged in March after faxing a letter to the Israeli consular office in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria allegedly claiming to be an Egyptian diplomat and offering his services to Israel's Mossad intelligence service. He has acknowledged contacting the consulate, but has denied offering to cooperate with Mossad. Tawfiq said he had contacted the office for help getting in touch with the international court that convicted a Libyan in the Pan Am bombing, which killed 270 people.
Tawfiq also claimed to have important information about French flight that exploded over the Sahara in 1989, killing all 170 people on board. Tawfiq confessed to forging papers indicating he worked as a diplomat for the Egyptian Embassy in Congo. He told reporters he had worked in Congo for four years until being fired for contacting European intelligence services. He also claimed to have worked with the CIA then. Investigators determined Tawfiq had worked in the Congo with an Egyptian-African cooperation fund affiliated with the Egyptian Foreign Ministry and had been fired. Tawfiq's sentence cannot be appealed and can be overturned only by the president.
Megrahi will say that as a member of the JSO, the Libyan intelligence service, he was employed with Libyan Arab Airlines. His job, he will claim, was not a front for terrorism, but rather a cover for buying spare parts and planes for Libya to keep its failing national airline afloat in the face of massive embargoes. Megrahi's claims will cause a huge inquiry in both Britain and America into which aircraft companies, and firms supplying aircraft parts, were illegally breaking the international sanctions and co-operating with Megrahi.
Megrahi told Dalyell and his new solicitor Eddie MacKechnie, who replaced Alistair Duff as the Libyan's lawyer in April, that he had been engaged in secret deals to undermine trade sanctions. MacKechnie acted as solicitor for Megrahi's co-accused, Al Amin Khalifa Fhimah, during the trial, and successfully secured a not guilty verdict. Megrahi told Dalyell that he used Malta, from where the prosecution team claim he orchestrated the PanAm 103 bombing in 1988, as a base to travel the world sanction-busting. 'He travelled to Ethiopia, which he said had the biggest collection of spare parts for Libya's fleet of Boeings,' said Dalyell. 'He also went to Brazil and Nigeria making contacts with firms who would help him break trade sanctions. Megrahi told me he bought Western aircraft and spare parts over a 10-year period. The Libyans were desperate for parts because of sanctions. He told me that he bust the sanctions in any way he could. He's admitting to being a sanctions-buster, not a bomber.'
It was Dalyell and Mandela who persuaded the men to hand themselves over for trial at the Scottish court in the Netherlands. Dalyell is now convinced of Megrahi's innocence. 'I'm morally obliged to speak for this man,' he said. According to Dalyell, Megrahi told his former solicitor Alistair Duff of his real role for Libya, but was never called to the stand to give evidence during the Lockerbie trial. 'I've no idea why he was never allowed to go into the witness box,' said Dalyell. 'He certainly told me that he wanted to take the stand.' Dalyell is to press for an adjournment debate in the Commons in an attempt to push the Prime Minister into agreeing to hold a public inquiry into the Lockerbie bombing. Many relatives of the Britons who died in the atrocity do not believe that Megrahi was behind the bombing.
Nelson Mandela's visit to Megrahi will be a way of repaying the friendship the Libyan people showed to the ANC during apartheid, and the support which Gaddafi gave to Mandela while in prison in South Africa. Dalyell said Mandela has always felt uneasy with the fact that Britain acted as 'complainer, prosecutor, judge and jury' in the Lockerbie trial.
Eddie MacKechnie said : 'This man wasn't in Malta to plant bombs. He is a graduate, the former head of the Centre for Strategic Studies in Tripoli and a university lecturer. Why would you use a man like that as a terrorist? 'Isn't it very odd that Libya had enormous trade sanctions against it, but still managed to run a decent airline for all those years. Of course they bought spare parts from abroad. Was Megrahi buying planes and spare parts? Yes. Was he planting bombs? No.' MacKechnie said Megrahi also worked for a Libyan trading company called ABH which took him around the world allowing him to breach sanctions. 'Megrahi's allegations are very serious,' said MacKechnie. 'He says US companies and citizens sold these items to Libya.
'He dealt with both legitimate companies and rogue middle-men as part of his work,' he added. 'A number of the companies would be very well known to the public -- they are big names. His work as a sanction-buster was going on well before Lockerbie happened. He is proud of what he did. He said he was doing it for the survival of his country.' MacKechnie added that, as part of his ongoing appeal process, Megrahi would be making an application to the European Court of Human Rights within the next few weeks and assembling a case to submit to the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission, which has the power to refer miscarriages of justice to the Court of Appeal. MacKechnie, who will accompany Mandela on the visit, said: 'It's an incredible honour. I hope that if he's concerned about the verdict that he'll raise the case's profile on the international stage.' Mandela's aide, Zelda la Grange, confirmed last night that the former ANC leader would be at Barlinnie Prison tomorrow by 11am.
"We're not the bad guys. There are no deals to be made here. This is about how they must comply and they must follow the U.N. Security Council resolutions," Kathleen Flynn, whose 21-year-old son died in the bombing, told reporters. The relatives spoke after meeting Assistant Secretary of State William Burns, who met Libyan and British officials in London on Thursday to discuss whether Libya will comply with U.N. obligations and accept liability for the bombing. "I think the lawyers made a big mistake by going to the press prior to discussing with the families," said Jack Flynn, Kathleen Flynn's husband. "That was a huge mistake and that came out loud and clear in the meeting."
Some families, who sued the Libyan government in 1996, have taken a pragmatic view of the offer, but others see it as a cynical ploy by Libya to lose the sanctions. The families have not made a formal position known on the offer and the Libyan government has distanced itself from it, leaving an impression it was the work of business circles. Cohen mentioned talks between the two groups of lawyers expected to take place in Paris later this month but scoffed at the notion they might easily be able to solve the issue. He said Burns stressed Libya still had to take other steps "before anything moves anywhere." The United States said it was up to the families to decide whether to accept the offer but that Libya still had to meet all the U.N. requirements before sanctions could be lifted.
Another family member, Rosemary Wolfe, quoted Burns as saying the Libyans had acknowledged being fully aware of the offer, "although they weren't publicly ready to deal with it." She added, "Burns also told us that the Libyans full well understood that they did have to (pay) compensation and meet every single one of the requirements that the U.N. set down. He indicated that they understood that more now." The U.N. sanctions were suspended when Libya gave up two suspects for trial in 1999 but they have never been removed due to U.S. opposition, though Britain resumed ties with Libya. The United States says it will not start looking at its own sanctions until the U.N. ones are gone and has recently raised concerns about Libyan weapons of mass destruction. Cohen said Burns cited an improvement in Libya on conventional terrorism. "But in the area of weapons of mass destruction there was much less progress and much more uneasiness on the part of the United States government."
Background information:
"The constructive atmosphere of previous meetings continued in today's trilateral talks and they made progress," the spokesman said. "We look forward to continuing with them." But he gave no detail on what progress had been made or when any future talks would be scheduled. A series of trilateral meetings between government officials to discuss Libya's response to United Nations resolutions began in London last year. Talks in October 2001, were followed by another round in January this year and then another on Thursday. The British Foreign Office spokesman said the ultimate aim was for Libya to give its "full and final response" to the U.N. Security Council resolutions on Lockerbie. Then a ruling would be made by the UNSC on whether the requirements had been met, and on whether sanctions again Libya could be lifted.
Now, however, Libya denies the deal, members of the Libyan government telling CNN on Wednesday that an unofficial offer only might have been made by a "non-governmental" negotiator. Meanwhile, lawyers representing the relatives are waiting for the millions to roll in: most lawyers get 30 percent of the bargain.
Features news, interview, pictures, comments, reactions and is updated around the hour today. Includins a copy of the letter in from Kreindler & Kreindler to the relatives of Pan Am 103 !
Updated June 02, 2002
